Bequia film makers present documentary about island’s fishing village

Move over Pirates of the Caribbean — Bequia film makers have premiered an interpretation of the real Caribbean.

Skylarc Pictures presented a special premiere screening of ‘RECLAIMING PAGET FARM: Looking Back. Moving Forward’ at the Paget Farm Community Centre last Saturday, April 30.{{more}}

Skylarc Pictures proudly presented the three-part documentary on Bequia’s fishing village past, present and future.

Created by a collective of first-time Bequia filmmakers during a 12-week intensive film programme, the one-hour film took the viewer on a journey through the history and present day of this community, moving on to meaningful possibilities for the future.

The first chapter, the past, brought to light the rich history of the community before the airport was built — through personal accounts of a culture that has all but disappeared.

The second chapter, the present, focused on the many social, economic and environmental challenges faced by the people of Paget Farm today, despite their many talents, craftsmanship and fishing culture.

The third and final chapter, the future, explored possible grassroots initiatives and action steps to build a future the people of ‘Southside’ want for their community. This chapter took a groundbreaking approach in mentality shift. Could love be the answer?

Part of a larger participatory initiative to increase community health and well-being in Paget Farm, the producers used the power of filmmaking, and other art forms, to create meaningful social and environmental change, with specific emphasis on public outreach, education and partnerships.

The film follows the successful screening of the 2013 short film bearing the same title.

The filmmakers, aged between 18 and 45, were all new to filmmaking prior to making this documentary. They spent three months learning the skills required to produce this unique narrative: research, filming, interviewing, editing.

The end result is an achievement beyond belief. These young people are not only proud of the documentary, they have new skills for life.

The filmmakers included: Anthony Sargeant, Brinsley Ollivierre, Canyon Duncan, Colin Peters, Daren Ragguette, Estar Mars, Jamie Simmons, Jason Simmons, Jessica King, Kirk Ollivierre, Moriah Alves, and Sophie Lawrence.

Executive producers were Cabral LARC Trotman and Jessica Jaja; more information on this can be found at www.reclaimingpagetfarm.com