Curtain call

Students of St Leonard’s School were among the first to watch the pilot of Barbados’ first musical film You Never Know when it was launched at their school today.

Writer and director of the short film, Jade Gibbons, told Barbados TODAY that the production, which is rated G, sends a message to viewers.

“The composer Shakiel Stoute is actually a former St Leonard’s boy and our lead actor Dario Squires is also a former St Leonard’s student, so they felt that this would be a fitting place for us to just show the film and launch it just to get the feedback from the students.

“We are using the session as a workshop, so it is not just about showing the film, but we want to have a holistic message. So we began with Mr Squires who is a professional swim coach and he is also certified in first aid and counselling.

“He gave them a brief introduction about himself and about his experiences working in the prison and what prisoners say in terms of the choices that they made and what landed them in the position that they are in,” Gibbons said.

As it relates to making choices, the filmmaker shared that the message behind the film was that choices an individual makes today impacts the future he or she has tomorrow.

The film which will be officially available online from November 15, stars Dario Squires, Dereja Mason, Donna Gibbons-Browne, Jamal Dawe, Abigail Gall and Ki’ann Browne.

Gibbons, a graduate of Harrison College, Winchester University, Hampshire, and the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, said those interested in the film would be able to purchase it on jadegibbons246.com.

“To rent the film is going to be US$4. Rental means you have 30 days to start watching and once you start watching it you have 24 hours to watch it as much as you want. Or alternatively, you can buy the film for US$5.99 which means that it is yours forever. You can use any credit card or visa debit card or master debit card,” she said.

The writer and producer of Gibbons Creative Education also indicated that she was now exploring the possibility of having a school tour where students would be allowed to watch the film at a discounted rate.

“If there are any schools out there who wants us to come you can contact us through our website. We are also looking into doing an official screening next year January for Errol Barrow Day,” Gibbons said.

Following the launch, some students said they were impressed with the high quality of the film and called for more to be added to it since they considered it to be too short. (AH)