The importance of film as a vehicle for raising awareness about human rights issues and advancing inclusion and social justice, will once again be highlighted at the trinidad+tobago film festival through the awarding of the Amnesty International Human Rights Film Prize.

Established in an effort to support the promotion of human rights in Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean, the Amnesty International Human Rights Prize will be awarded to a Caribbean filmmaker whose film best highlights a human rights issue.

The winning film will be chosen by a three-person jury, which this year comprises Gregory Sloane-Seale, National Coordinator, Citizen Security Programme in the Ministry of National Security; Dr Gabrielle Hosein, Head of Department and lecturer, Institute for Gender and Development Studies, at The University of the West Indies, and Pamela Carmona, Regional Youth and Activism Coordinator at the, Amnesty International Americas Regional Office, in Mexico.

Film buffs in south Trinidad will be pleased to know that there will be a full week of films shown in San Fernando at this Year’s T&T Film Festival (TTFF). TTFF programme director Annabelle Alcazar said this is the first year there will be a full week of programming in the southern city.

Over 120 films will be screened during this year’s festival, including short and feature-length films from T&T and the Caribbean.

Festival highlights will include Feature T&T (a full day of screenings in support of National Patriotism Month); panels and films on gender and social justice; a strong industry programme with a focus on screenwriting and script development; Code Orange (regional incentives and co-productions with our Latin American neighbours); panels and films examining the representation of women and girls in film; and the youth initiatives the RBC Future Critics Program and the RBC Youth Jury, both mentored by former Sunday Arts Section film critic BC Pires.

In celebration of Canadian diversity, on and off the screen, the trinidad+tobago film festival will host a screening of the Canadian film Two Soft Things, Two Hard Things – to highlight one aspect of that diversity. The screening, which will take place at the Hyatt Regency on Sunday 24 September, from 3.30pm, is free of charge and courtesy the Canadian High Commission in Port of Spain.

Allison Brewer, one of the activists who appears in the documentary, will be in attendance to introduce the film and participate in a Q&A session at the end of the screening, giving the audience the opportunity to further explore the issues examined in the film.

Two Soft Things, Two Hard Things, by  Mark Kenneth Woods + Michael Yerxa, explores a dramatic period in the 1950s when colonisation and religion shamed and erased traditional beliefs about sexuality and family structure among the Inuit population in northwest Canada.

What started as a film about a community’s LGBTQ pride celebration, quickly developed into a layered discussion of government colonial programs, Christian missions, language and the loss of cultural identity.

Filmmakers wishing to apply for a TT$10,000 Award for the best TT film in development, have until 30 August to do so.  The Award sponsored by BP Trinidad and Tobago as part of the trinidad+tobago film festival, seeks to make a contribution towards the completion of a local narrative or documentary feature film currently in pre-production, which is being made by a TT resident or national and is to be made in this country.

In response to written questions about the impact of winning the BPTT Best TT Film in Development Award in 2014, filmmaker Christian James had this to say:

What were your immediate feelings on winning?

I remember being surprised actually! I had just returned to Trinidad with an MFA in Creative Producing and had a slate of projects/ ideas I was working on. The plan was to figure out which one of these ideas was exciting, culturally relevant, and had a vision for International development. I ended up applying with Rajah (working title), which is based on the life of the infamous Boysie Singh, even though I had ‘Green Days by the River’ in development as well. I knew Green Days… could have been produced with local money, due to the strong Caribbean property of the book by Michael Anthony, but Rajah would need bigger scale budgets and international funders to get off the ground.

The Film Programme at The University of the West Indies (UWI), will once again host the screening of internationally acclaimed and student made films, as part of the trinidad+tobago film festival, which runs from 19 – 26 September. The UWI programme will take place at 12 Carmody Street, St Augustine, with a day of documentaries on Friday 22, and a showcase of student films, with Q+As, on Saturday 23 September.

Among the selection of films  is La Matamoros, by Panamanian director Delfina Vidal, which won Best Picture at the International Film Festival Panama, in the Central America and Caribbean category.

La Matamoros tells the story of Marta Matamoros, a phenomenal figure in Panamanian history who rose from being a factory dressmaker to becoming an international trade union leader, playing a key role in asserting Panamanian independence against U.S. domination. Dedicated to the defense of the rights of Panamanian women and workers, her struggle brought her persecution and imprisonment, yet she remained fearless in the face of oppression, refusing to be bribed or intimidated. It is through her struggles that Panamanians gained a minimum wage and paid maternity leave.

The deadline for filmmakers wishing to submit a film for screening at the 12th edition of the trinidad+tobago film festival (ttff) – to be held from 19 – 26 September 2017, is fast approaching. Those wishing to submit a film must do so by the 15 May. A rough cut will be considered.

The Festival accepts submissions from Caribbean filmmakers, Caribbean filmmakers in the diaspora, and international filmmakers with films from or about the Caribbean or its diaspora. Submissions must have been produced after 01 January 2015.

All submissions must be made online, via the ttff Visitor Page at https://vp.eventival.eu/ttff/2017

There is no submission fee.

For queries, contact us directly at submit@ttfilmfestival.com, or visit the FAQ page on our website at www.ttfilmfestival.com/submit/faq.

The trinidad+tobago film festival (ttff) celebrates films from and about the Caribbean and its diaspora, as well as from world cinema, through an annual festival and year-round screenings. In addition, the ttff seeks to facilitate the growth of Caribbean cinema by offering a wide-ranging industry programme and networking opportunities. The ttff is presented by Flow, given leading sponsorship by bpTT, and contributing sponsorship by RBC Royal Bank.

For further information visit www.ttfilmfestival.com.