Carlene Sandy; Daley In control of my sexuality

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

“So, I have written a book called, Whose Vagina Is It, Really?” I burst out laughing because the sentence completely threw me off. This comment was made during my live interview with a stunningly, articulate director writer, and producer at the opening of the Caribbean Tales Film Festival. After that interview I contacted her because I wanted to learn more about this tenacious, energetic soul, who seemed to have no filter and had found a way to tell her story unapologetically. I would like to take this time to introduce to the Toronto Caribbean Newspaper readers, the prolific, and fascinating Carlene Sandy Daley.

“Find your passion, stick with it, stay focused and have patience with yourself.” ~Sandy Daley

From a very young age, Sandy Daley has had a fascination with words. During our interview, Sandy speaks about the fact that her family had seen something in her, and had fostered what they saw, “If you were looking for me, you would find me with my face buried in a book, or writing away, creating stories from my imagination. My family wouldn’t force me to do any housework, they would just sit me on blanket on the grass, and leave me there with my books, my pencil, and my thoughts.”

Her creative mind, love for literature, and zest for life has been the foundation for the well-established career that Sandy has created for herself. Alongside writing, Sandy also realized that she had a passion for acting as well. She followed this passion, and in her first audition, Sandy scored the lead role in Christen Brown’s feature film, “Another Planet” which is the story about a young black woman from Toronto, who explores and discovers her African roots on a Quebec farm. This opportunity opened Sandy up to other acting ventures, which includes appearing in numerous music videos, and lead roles in small college productions. Her versatility was on display when she played a 60-year-old woman in “The Sweetest Thing” and she was blessed with the chance to perform at the Living in the City Theatre, as well as the Far Side Theatre in Jamaica. Sandy didn’t stop there; she became a co-host on a show called “Word” a youth-oriented cable program, and from there she became a favoured guest on many talk and radio programs. What makes her a considerable talent is her candid stance on topics presented to her and her vibrant nature.

“I write about issues that bother me because who can afford a psychologist, Really?”

 Never forgetting her love for writing, Sandy dove right back into storytelling, except this time, she began to speak about her real-life experiences. During her time in New York City, Sandy began her column “Real Talk with Sandy” which was featured in Street Hype Newspaper. It became one of the most talked about and well-read columns in the newspaper, so much that it was picked up in “Pride News Magazine” which is published in Toronto, Canada. The right people began to take notice of Sandy’s work, and she was the recipient of the Spirit Award for favourite columnist in 2009, at Citi Fields in New York City. What is loved about Sandy is her ability to tackle issues surrounding love, relationships and sex, in a humorous, and in your face kind of way. It came to the point that everyone was looking forward to her weekly adventures as a single woman, and this brought her to one of her biggest accomplishments to date.

Whose Vagina Is It, Really? has turned out to be one of her proudest achievements, and she has dedicated it to all single and married women as it details the lives of women and how they deal with their sexuality living in the modern world. It did very well in Jamaica selling over 800 copies, and she is in the pre-production phase of a television series based of her book. “There are many times in my life that I feel like I am spinning in circles, but I am woman enough to admit this, and writing this book has allowed me to take control of my sexuality,” Sandy told me, “On New Years Eve when everyone was out partying, I was putting together my vision board, and on this board was my goal to work with Netflix. Low and behold, I am in talks with Netflix about turning this book into an actual series, and I am currently working on Whose Vagina Is It Really? the uncensored version, so keep an eye out for that as well.”

Sandy’s most recently has become involved in the filmmaking, and screenwriting industry, and the culmination of all her work can be seen in her film Daddy’s Not Around, which was selected to be included in the CineFAM micro cinema challenge. Sandy and her small crew were required to create a short film using unconventional film-making techniques, using cell phones, GoPros, tablets, and other low-budget equipment. “Our crew looked like the United Colours of Benetton,” Sandy remarks, “It was mostly a female crew, but I had one of my favourite actors Shamba Amani as my co-star, and my amazingly talented son Nathaniel Daley who stole the spotlight. I am very proud of him.”

Daddy’s Not Around examines the impact of a fatherless home on the black community; colonialism has had an impact on the black community, especially the black men. This film focuses on the unconscious thoughts and behaviours that are carried out in the Afro-Caribbean community, and how these behaviours are continuing to affect us as a people.

Sandy Daley is a light that continues to illuminate a world that at times seems dark, and desolate. Keep up the good work young lady and know that your community continues to support you.