LOS ANGELES – Caribbean movie, Hit For Six! had its third United States screening as an official selection of the Pan African Film Festival (PAFF) at the Magic Johnson Theatre in Los Angeles on Thursday night.
From February 7 to 18, the festival is being hosted before a gathering of renowned and emerging film makers, directors and actors.
Hit For Six! will screen again on Monday, February 18 at 3:40 p.m.
In collaboration with PAFF, one of its sponsors, the Caribbean International Film Festival also hosted ” A Caribbean Night” as the official after party for the “Hit For Six” Los Angeles screening on Thursday. The Caribbean International Film Festival will take place in Barbados from April 9 to 13, 2008 at which Hit For Six! will be screened.
Written and directed by West Indian communications specialist Alison Saunders-Franklyn and produced by Blue Waters Productions, Hit For Six! is a fictional account of a West Indian cricketer who fights a match fixing charge. He learns about love while struggling for his last chance to play in a major global tournament and earns the respect of his estranged father, a former great West Indies player.
Since its establishment in 1992, the Pan African Film Festival has promoted cultural and racial tolerance and understanding through the exhibition of film, art and creative expression. The organisers pride themselves on featuring “quality films” from the United States, Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe, the South Pacific and Canada. “It is therefore quite a distinction for Hit For Six! to be selected alongside many others from around the world,” said Saunders-Franklyn who is currently in Los Angeles.
“We are really delighted to be selected for another prestigious film festival since it offers excellent exposure for our film, the Caribbean and its culture,” said Chairman of Blue Waters Productions, Dr. Basil Springer. “We see Hit For Six! as a catalyst for the development of the Caribbean film industry and we look forward to opportunities like this to interface with players in the global marketplace. Blue Waters Productions has used smart partnerships combining creative talent and business with a view to moving our regional industry to a higher level,” Dr. Springer added.
Hit For Six! premiered on April 18 last year and enjoyed a five-week run in Barbados. The producers have secured Caribbean-wide theatrical distribution deals for 14 countries. Last October, Hit For Six!was screened at the American Black Film Festival in Hollywood and a month later received rave reviews in Washington DC at the prestigious American Film Institute. The movie also won three awards at the Bridgetown Film Festival.
Writer and director Alison Saunders-Franklyn (second from left) with some impressed viewers at the American Film Institute in Washington DC last year. From left: Chancellor of the University of the West Indies Sir George Alleyne; former West Indies fast bowler Rev. Dr. Wes Hall; Mrs. Norleen Hoyte and husband Harold Hoyte, Editor Emeritus of the Nation Newspaper in Barbados; and Barbados’ Ambassador to the United States, the Hon. Michael King.
