Storyteller, historian, retired court judge, Ray Funk, stumbled across Trinidad and Tobago and fell in love with Carnival, steelpan and calypso, and in so doing he became a national treasure whose extensive research has led to the unearthing of rare historical finds of forgotten Carnival history.

For our next ttff talk, we’ll be sitting down for an intimate and wide-ranging conversation on falling in love with carnival, steelpan and calypso with aficionado Ray Funk.

When: 1pm AST, 23 June 2021
Where: Facebook Live @ttfilmfestival

Ray Funk is a retired Alaskan state court trial judge, a Fulbright scholar, an honorary fellow of the University of Trinidad and Tobago and has been coming to Trinidad Carnival for over two decades. He has written dozens of articles on calypso, steelpan and mas, primarily for the Trinidad Guardian and Caribbean Beat; co-written books, curated exhibitions, and lectured in Trinidad, across the US, Canada and England at schools, universities, and libraries on aspects of Trinidad music, carnival, and culture. Funk co-curated a traveling and online exhibition at the Historical Museum of Southern Florida, “Calypso: A World Music”, which went on to tour colleges, libraries, and museums in the US and Trinidad. Michael Eldridge and Funk co-wrote and produced “Calypso Craze”, a boxed set, with a coffee table book, six CDs and a DVD in 2014. He co-wrote two books, Invaders Steel Orchestra and Steelpan in Education: Northern Illinois Steel Orchestra. Funk has done several presentations for the trinidad+tobago film festival over the last decade on historic Carnival footage.

ttff talks is geared towards inspiring and motivating film and television practitioners in Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean, by creating a forum for in-depth and wide-ranging one-on-one conversations about the art and creativity, business, joys and challenges of working in the film and creative industries.

We’re delighted to announce a new ttff initiative, Limin’ Live – an informal, 20-minute, one-on-one chat, with creative and film industry folks, about the art, business, joys and challenges of working in film and television. Limin’ Live will take place every Monday at 5pm AST on Instagram live @ttfilmfestival, and subsequently made available on igtv. We hope the chats will be inspiring, entertaining, and interesting to a varied audience of creative practitioners in the Caribbean. 

We’ll be limin’ live with filmmaker, Ian Harnarine on Monday 01 March at 5pm AST.

Ian Harnarine’s films include work for TED and Sesame Street, one of which earned an Emmy nomination. Harnarine’s film Doubles With Slight Pepper, executive produced by Spike Lee, won the Toronto International Film Festival and the Canadian Academy Award. Caroni, the story of a West-Indian domestic worker in New York premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and continues to be screened at festivals around the world. Harnarine is currently adapting David Chariandy’s landmark novel, Soucouyant and a feature adaptation of Doubles With Slight Pepper.

Ian was selected by Filmmaker Magazine as one of the 25 New Faces of Independent Film, profiled in the New York Times and named one of Playback Magazine’s Ten to Watch. Ian has a MFA from New York University’s Graduate Film School, and is a member of the National Board of Review, Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television, and the Television Academy.

Tune in to IG Live at 5pm AST on Monday 01 March for limin’ live with Ian Harnarine!

limin’ live is brought to you with the support of Republic Bank Limited.

UPDATE: The ttff/21 call for submissions is now closed and we will not be accepting any new submissions for 2021.

The trinidad+tobago film festival is pleased to announce the call for submissions for ttff/21, our 16th edition! Submissions can be made through our festival portal on Film Freeway.

Deadlines:
Early bird: 05 March, 2021
Regular: 16 April, 2021
Late: 21 May, 2021
Extended late deadline: 31 May 2021

The ttff seeks to highlight excellence in filmmaking through the exhibition of fiction and documentary feature and short films made in Trinidad and Tobago, the Caribbean and its diaspora. The Festival therefore accepts submissions from Caribbean filmmakers in the region and in the diaspora; and international filmmakers with films from or about the Caribbean or its diaspora. Submissions must have been completed after 01 January 2019. For full submission guidelines and categories, please visit our portal on Film Freeway.

ttff/21 will include new shorts, and features, narrative films, documentaries and experimental films, which explore the Caribbean experience. Filmmakers – whether student, emerging or established – with films that fit our criteria are welcome to apply! Our 2021 festival will be a hybrid, with a combination of online and in-person events and screenings – as required by Trinidad & Tobago Government regulations.

Our training and professional development programmes will continue to be a core offering of ttff in 2021, and will include, Masterclasses (intensive 3-day workshops led by international industry professionals), filmmaker panels, introductory industry workshops and presentations, and youth-focused mentorship and training.

If you have any questions or concerns, please visit our frequently asked questions or drop us a line at hello@ttfilmfestival.com.

Submit your film to ttff/21 via FilmFreeway.