Nevis hosts first International Film Festival

CHARLESTOWN, Nevis -- The Community Cohesion Foundation in partnership with The Nevis Cultural Development Foundation and Community Development (Nevis) will host the Nevis International First Feature Film Festival (NIF3). The festival will take place May 3-8, 2009 at various locations around Nevis.


“We are very much looking forward to the film festival and the exposure we hope it will bring to the island as a cultural destination,” said Devon Liburd, marketing director for the Nevis Tourism Authority. “This festival will provide a unique opportunity for us to reach a diverse audience.”

*Devon Liburd, marketing director Nevis Tourism Authority.

NIF³ aims to be a leading competitive showcase of first feature films from around the world, with a particular focus on the Caribbean region and emphasis on the discovery of first film works by new talent and emerging filmmakers. Entries are already registered from Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Curacao, Haiti, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago and Venezuela.

“Of all of the exhausted clichés of the Caribbean, the most pervasive is in the sense that the sunshine can’t be serious and that profound thoughts shy away from the midday glare,” said Festival Director Petra Carvalho. “It is true that much of Caribbean culture has been imported from abroad, but the region is certainly creating its own, and we hope this festival will only enable that culture to thrive.”

A blue-ribbon panel of judges has been selected to review the films including well-known German Director Joachim von Vietingham, who will serve as the special advisor to NIF³ and act as chief judge at the festival. More than $30,000 will be awarded in cash prizes for best regional feature, best regional documentary and best regional short, among others. Source