Tips for budding filmmakers

MOVE?ASIDE,?Denzel Washington and Christian Bale.
Young Barbadians are not only fascinated by the glamour of Hollywood actors but are also keen to know more about those behind the camera.
Recently, at the Bagnall Point Gallery in Pelican Village, more than three dozen people, two of them teenagers, turned up for the first two days of a four-day workshop on film directing hosted by the National Cultural Foundation (NCF).
Fast-rising filmmaker and course director Carlos Barrow told the WEEKEND NATION he was delighted with the response.
“We can’t have a Denzel without a director, who is the one that is going to make these films happen. I am also very happy with the response. It is good to know that there are so many interested Barbadians.
“We have two young women, both of whom under the age of 18, so we have the youth coming in. These are people who are genuinely interested, and now they have a better understanding of what it takes to get a film done. Hopefully, we will have some budding directors and we will get some stuff coming out soon,” he said.
Barrow, who has received an award for production design in short film, made it clear that the role of a director was about more than story-telling.
“Overall, it is about telling a story but what goes into getting that story told is where the innovation happens and where he becomes more than just story-teller.
“You have to be a communicator, a people person, you have to be a businessperson because you have to speak to investors.
“It is all in the service of being a story-teller but you become more than that because of what you have to do to get the story told,” he said.
According to Barrow, dreaming for the stars is not about making a Hollywood movie.
“Why would you want to make a Hollywood movie when you can make a Barbadian movie? In terms of making it big, I definitely can see that happening.
“If it can happen for Rihanna in music, it really can happen in any setting or industry, you just have to put the work in, have a little luck and the right timing.
“Money is a big part of it, but I think that if we come together and make some of our projects, and show them that we are good enough to invest in, the future is bright.
“I am 100 per cent certain that I can make a movie that is as good as a movie out of the United States. I am not saying it is going to look like Transformers, we don’t have that big, big budget, but we can make a film that people will look at,” he added.
Barrow has a film-production company, Rockstone Media, which is now seeking to enhance its profile.
“My goal is to shoot a feature-length fim in Barbados within the next year and hopefully that will be pretty soon.
“For now, I am keen to continue working with budding young filmmakers and take the industry to the next level.” (MK)