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According to Dr. Paddington, “The rest of the region is really now starting.”
He sites his home country, Trinidad and Tobago as a leader in initiating
the kinds of initiatives necessary to help drive growth of the industry. The
government of the twin island republic has instituted a 35% tax rebate for
international film companies choosing to have their films produced on the
island. This progressive move allows for the employment of local crews,
critical knowledge sharing between international filmmakers and their local
counterparts and the additional boost to the country’s tourism product.
Dr. Paddington however, contends that much more needs to be done not
only in his homeland, which he holds up as an example of movement in
the right direction but across the Caribbean. Himself an award-winning
filmmaker and founder of the Caribbean Federation of Filmmakers, Dr.
Paddington believes that there is a greater need for more collaboration and
coproduction across the region. “We need more films that deal with the
wider Caribbean--Stories that show the linkages of Caribbean countries.”
Although doing all this makes perfect sense, the issue of distribution and
getting these works seen is still a riddle to be fully solved by regional
filmmakers. With international studios holding a monopoly on cinemas,
breaking into the mainstream of movie theaters continues to be an uphill
battle for the independently produced films. One answer is the coveted
spot in the many regional and international film festivals available. Getting
there however is an expensive undertaking and is often out the reach of
the struggling filmmaker. Dr. Paddington believes that this and the actual
production of quality films is the very reason why collectively, Caribbean
governments should consider setting up a regional fund for film. Wishful
thinking? Maybe not. There however, has not been any movement in that
direction.
One regional agency which has shown some movement, has been the
Caribbean Export Development Agency. They have made it possible for
several filmmakers and other creative industry producers to make the long
and expensive trip to Europe to attend international tradeshows and film
festivals. The agency also recently commissioned a film on the business of
sport in the region titled, “Built to Last”which looked at the Caribbean region’s
ability to produce world-class athletes. Dr. Paddington lauds the efforts of
the agency but contends that greater effort should be made to support the
wider development of the industry by exposing many more of the talented
regional filmmakers and producers to the art of developing international
quality films. He sees this being possible by local governments and regional
agencies like Caribbean Export supporting the attendance of international
film producers to the various Caribbean film festivals and opening more
avenues for co-productions between local and international producers. Dr.
Paddington also contends that the time has come for a possible CARIFORUM
co-production treaty to help drive and empower collaborative works. He
believes, “It’s time the region is not only known for its tourism but as a place
where the creative industries do well.”
*
Most of the big budget f ilms which
are pr oduced in the bigger markets,
l ike the US and to some extent the
UK are done thr ough studios. In this
system, a f ilm is often developed,
pr oduced, distributed and exploited
without leaving a single integrated
company or consortium: a simple
corporate value chain.