Engaging, compelling and heart-tugging! That best describes the full-length alternative drama titled Home Again, filmed in sweet T&T which premiered at Movietowne in Woodbrook, Port-of-Spain, on Tuesday.
And to think, the production was originally intended to be a documentary.
That all changed and for the better, however, when Jennifer Holness and Sudz Sutherland, the producer and director, realised the material they had amassed after almost a decade of research on the deportation policies of the Governments of the United States, Canada and United Kingdom.
The duo came closer to understanding the impact on returning nationals whom in many cases had no remaining attachments to the country of their birth, citing that they migrated as infants. In other cases hardened criminals were being ousted from developed to developing countries, with the latter being incapable of coping with their nefarious lifestyles.
Set in Jamaica, it was T&T that benefitted from the filming of Home Again. There were issues of safety for the foreign actors in Jamaica, which their representing unions would not overlook. In addition, the Jamaican Government did not have the rebate system in place for international film producers, seeking to enter the country to film.
In T&T, the production team had safety and incentives which in the end saw the film being shot on local soil, said Lisa Wickham, the T&T supervising producer for the film.
"Many countries around the world offer the rebate as an incentive to get international films to come and (be) produced. They (producers) were going back and forth with the Government of Jamaica for about two years and then they bumped into Carla Foderingham, from the film company (of T&T) who said, we give 35 per cent rebate in T&T. Why don't you come? They came in 2011 to see if T&T could pass for Jamaica. Internationally many films are shot in other countries. It's not unusual for a film to be shot in a foreign country for it to appear as authentic and credible."
Beetham Gardens, Sea Lots and Morvant are all communities in T&T that are considered high-risk, but interestingly, these were the locales for most of the film and according to Wickham the crew was immediately welcomed into these communities. In fact, 24 extras in the film came from Beetham Gardens.
From Paramin to Cumuto, Home Again was filmed in 20 different communities across T&T. To do this, they had to consult with the respective residents and provide notices.
"They felt T&T was a safe place to bring the 37-member Canadian crew. They felt confident that the crew would not be threatened in any way when filming for two months," Wickham said.
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