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The Jamaica Film and Television Association (JAFTA) in partnership with Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO) and the CHASE Fund are pleased to announce the selected finalists for the 2017 JAFTA Propella film initiative. The five selected finalists are: Kyle Chin, Angela Magnus, Sarah Manley, Danielle Russell and Nile Saulter.

JAFTA, a growing community of Jamaican filmmakers and television practitioners, launched the inaugural JAFTA Propella in 2016. JAFTA Propella is a script to screen programme geared towards the sustainable development and creation of Jamaican film content and storytelling. The initiative aims to uncover and expose the new work of existing and emerging local filmmakers, as well as promote Jamaican film to international audiences.

The first year culminated in five of the top shorts to come out of Jamaica. They showcased outstanding local talent collaborating to create memorable stories from varying genres, each with its own distinct perspective of the Jamaican experience.

For its second year, a call for short film treatment submissions was sent out in January 2017. Close to fifty submissions were received, more than doubling the number of entries of the previous year. A top ten was shortlisted and a final five selected. The five finalists will be awarded JA$500,000.00 each towards the production of their short films which will be screened at the 2017 Trinidad & Tobago Film Festival later this year.

JAFTA Propella includes three capacity building interventions, undertaken by JAMPRO: script development and consultation, directing and producing and festival strategy and distribution workshops. The script consultations and workshops will be led by Director, Writer and NYU Professor Alrick Brown and Screenwriter Amba Chevannes. The project also includes a market attendance component that finances the airfare and accommodation of the selected five to Trinidad in September and the Clermont Ferrand International Short Film Festival in February 2018.

JAMPRO’s Film Commissioner Renee Robinson noted that JAMPRO was committed to the programme and will be working with JAFTA to continue to provide development opportunities for the industry. Robinson said, “The Film Commission is thrilled to continue our partnership with JAFTA and the CHASE Fund on the delivery of Propella 2017. This initiative represents a unique program design model that includes talent discovery, capacity building, production, exhibition, and international market attendance – taking the participants truly from script to screen.”

“The first iteration of the partnership has been lauded regionally and internationally for its innovative structure, and we have already started seeing the benefits via new business opportunities being extended to the inaugural cohort.”

“The selection is auteur-driven with focus on the writer/director, however the development component focuses on business and strategy, rounding out a hybrid creative professional. I am truly excited to see the final productions develop over the next few months. Congratulations to the 2017 Finalists!”

JAFTA, with support from JAMPRO and CHASE Fund, continues to foster a spirit of togetherness, community and advancement for our local film and television industry.