About pan and movies

Pan Trinbago is embarking on another of its initiatives next month, spearheaded by the organisation’s Northern Region. 

1.2.3....Plus is a trilogy of big panyard shows, featuring the top three conventional steel orchestras in this year’s National Panorama competition—Petrotrin Phase II Pan Groove, Neal & Massy Trinidad All Stars, BP Renegades. 

The Plus for the first show will be Laventille Serenaders, 2K13 champion among single pan bands. North Region spokesman Desiree Myers said each show will have a “Plus” guest artiste.

Myers revealed that the second show will be held on Father’s Day (June 16) at Trinidad All Stars pan complex, on Duke Street, Port-of-Spain.

Renegades’ pan theatre on Charlotte Street will be the venue for the final event, scheduled for October 27.

Myers said the region, despite still being in the negotiating stage with potential sponsors, has managed to keep admission to the minimal fee of $40 (single), and $60 per couple.

The Northern Region also has a number of fund-raising ventures on the drawing table, including a mammoth bingo later this year.

On a drive towards self-sufficiency, Pan Trinbago also has a number of fund-raising initiatives up its sleeve, including the resumption of its very successful Pan in D Countryside series of open-air productions, earmarked to start in Tabaquite on April 6. 

Like last year, when this event was taken to remote areas across the nation, Pan Trinbago is inviting the public to subscribe to its shuttle service.

The April 6 event, scheduled to begin at 5 pm, will feature BP Renegades, Pamberi, Golden Hands, Rio Claro Koskero and San City Symphony steel orchestras. 

Pan Trinbago is offering a shuttle service from Port-of-Spain to the venue at the cost of $125 per head. The bus leaves Pan Trinbago’s head office, located on Park Street, opposite Victoria Square, at 2 pm.

Home Again premieres at MovieTowne

Home Again, the movie, starring Tatyana Ali (Fresh Prince of Bel Air), Canadian rock star FeFe Dobson and CCH Pounder (The Shield, Avatar, Bagdad Cafe, Law & Order) will make its T&T debut on April 3, just about one year after wrapping on filming in Trinidad.

The Canadian film, shot here in early 2012, tells the story of three young people who have been deported from metropolitan cities back to their homeland—Jamaica—and the challenges they face in coming to terms with a reality in which they are in a strange place with no family, no money and support systems. 

The movie is based on six years of research by the Canadian producers who have attempted to portray as real life as possible the stories of several deportees woven into the three lead characters played by Ali, Stephan James and Lyriq Bent.

To date, Home Again has garnered two nominations at the Canadian Screen Awards and copped the Bafta Festival Choice Award at the 2013 Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles.

Home Again is a production of an award-winning team: Jen Holness (producer/writer); Sudz Sutherland (director); and producer Don Carmody (Academy Award for Chicago); with T&T supervising producer being Lisa Wickham.

Over 1,000 people from T&T appear in the film as extras with just about 100 local actors. Near 100 locals were hired as crew on the set of the film which took just about one month to film. 

The local team was able to operate alongside Canadian crew members who have worked on some major Hollywood blockbusters and critically-acclaimed films. 

Patrons can expect to see names like Teri-Leigh Bovell, Leslie-Ann Lavine, Michael Cherrie, Cecilia Salazar, Patti-Anne Ali, Pauline Mark, Grace Aberdeen, George Gonzales, Kevin Nathaniel, Che Rodriguez, to name a few, appearing on the silver screen alongside the Hollywood stars, some of them holding strong performances opposite the leads like Ali and Pounder.

Movietowne will carry the movie for one week from April 3.

For more information on the movie, go to homeagainfilm.com