Chewstick reintroduces 'Bakatown' with film festival

MONDAY, JANUARY 23: The Chewstick Foundation is encouraging the community to come out and support local filmmakers as they showcase their work at the inaugural Bakatown Short Film Festival taking place this weekend.

The three-day event will feature free films and music by local artists as well as a video DJ and screenings of award-winning films.

Chewstick’s Diedrea Bean said: “The Bakatown Short Film Festival promotes understanding of diverse cultures by displaying the passions and unique vision of these filmmakers, and promises to both entertain and educate viewers.

“The Chewstick Foundation is very happy to have received sponsorship from the Economic Empowerment Zones Agency and Digicel whose support is graciously appreciated as we collaborate to revitalize the Bakatown area and dispel the misinformation that challenges its vitality.”

Gavin Djata Smith, executive director of The Chewstick Foundation, said: “Apart from Chewstick’s primary aim to be an avenue for personal growth, our secondary aim is to be a positive force in Bermuda generally and ‘Back of Town’ specifically; constantly embedding our youth, arts, cultural and community programs in the heart of this region.

“In this vein we are proud to re-envision this area by embracing the ‘Back of Town’ legacy and reintroducing it as ‘Bakatown’; to both celebrate the deep cultural history of the area while at the same time marking a new chapter in its history as a revitalized center of Bermudian history, culture and pride.

“The Bakatown Short Film Festival is our first introduction of the theme that we aim to be a major game changer for the North Hamilton Community and Bermuda as a whole. And Future Shorts creates a unique opportunity to embark on this new path.”

Bakatown Short Film Festival

Day 1: Thursday, January 26, from 6pm until 9pm

Day one of the festival is a free showcase of the submissions in the 2012 Bakatown Short Film Festival. The following films will be shown:

• Faeries of Green Lochan by Scott Neil
• Melanin Man (Live Wires Music Video) by Dana Zhyon Selassie
• FABRIC - History of the Portuguese in Bermuda/Senhor Santo Cristo dos Milagres Festa Bermuda 2011 by Milton Raposo
• Rise Up (world premiere Bento Music Video) by Asha Ludwig
• The African Connection: Memoirs of our journey home by Dana Zhyon Selassie

After the screenings there will be a roundtable discussion with local filmmakers:

• Al Seymour - Film/TV/Animation
• Milton Raposo - Film/TV/Commercial
• Donald "Detrimental" Robinson - Music Video
• Scott Neil - Film/Animation
• Asha Ludwig - Film/TV.

Day 2: Friday, January 27 from 9pm until 1am

Day two is a free celebration of local artists and music video filmmakers. A video DJ will entertain guests with local music videos projected on to a 12ft by 8ft screen at The Chewstick Lounge.

The Music Video Launch party will feature music videos from artists such as: Twanee' Butterfield, Prof-A-C, Kombat, Propa, Jelani, Fiyah Marshall, Mz Malz and Haz... all the way up to international local artists like Heather Nova, Collie Buddz, Mishka and more.

Snacks and refreshments will be available with donations accepted to support The Chewstick Foundation. Call 292-2439, email [email protected] or visit www.chewstick.org for more details.

Day 3: Saturday, January 28 from 6pm to 9pm

The main event for the Bakatown Short Film Festival will begin with an opening reception which will take place from 6pm in the Liberty Theatre lobby and will feature a selection of local performers, cocktails and refreshments for sale and a chance to mingle with fellow film enthusiasts.

At 7pm the Future Shorts (www.futureshorts.com) will start in the main theatre.

The collection is a series of six films which range from 6-20 minutes and display genres from real life dramas to stop-motion and animation.

Each film has received industry awards and the collection boasts winners from The Oscars, SXSW, BAFTA and the Sundance Film Festival, to name a few.

The screening will end at about 9pm and will be followed by a wrap party at The Chewstick Lounge.

For more information on the programming for the BSFF visit http://www.futureshorts.com/calendar-city-screenings.php, call 292-2439 or email [email protected].