In celebration of the 15th Anniversary of Animae Caribe Festival, Founder and Creative Director Camille Selvon Abrahams was asked by the Inter-American Development Bank to collaborate on an exhibition of Caribbean animations submitted to the festival over the last fifteen years. The twenty hand selected shorts will be exhibited at the IDB Head Office Conference Centre in Washington DC from 14th of April till July of this year. This will include screening works from animators like Wendell Mc Shine and Ansar Sattar from Trinidad and Tobago, Corretta Singer from Jamaica, Isis Chaviano Real of Cuba, Ted Sandiford from St Lucia among others. Speaking at the event in DC, Abrahams will address an audience of officials, business people and ambassadors to present a summary of the Caribbean animation community, and share the great achievements that have been accomplished in the Caribbean.
This showcase represents a milestone in the yearlong campaign of celebrations for the 15th (fifteen) Anniversary of the Animae Caribe festival. Training workshops, exhibitions and outreach will be critical to the celebration of this historic occasion. Gaining support from regional institutions like CARICOM, Caribbean Development Bank and Carib-Export in Barbados, this year’s festival will be a week of international guests, animated boot camp, screenings along with Animation and Gaming professionals from the Caribbean Diaspora who are making waves in companies like Disney, Pixar, EA Games etc. Carded for 24th to 30th of October it will be a year for celebrating our Caribbean brothers and sisters, flying the regional flag in the international animation industry. The 2016 Edition has a special focus on Tobago with a new concept of making the last two days of the festival an eco-friendly experience. With screenings and exhibitions planned for village communities like Castara on the south coast of the island, where communities can gain revenue from the visitors and guests attending. About the exhibit, Trinidad Zaldivar, Chief of the Cultural, Solidarity and Creativity Affairs Division of the Office of External Relations at the IDB stated that, “we are delighted to present this exhibit in partnership with Animae Caribe in Washington DC, with the hope of increasing awareness about the importance of supporting a vibrant creative economy, since the development of new outlets for creative production will pave the way for sustainable social and economic development for the region.”
It was important for founder Abrahams to use this opportunity to shed some focus on female animators and to highlight issues like autism. Kendall Boodhoo a member of the Autistic Society of Trinidad and Tobago, won an Animae Caribe Award for his animation and his will be one of the twenty selected for showing to this international audience. The aim is to share with the world the impact that animation can have on youth empowerment, gender opportunities, reverse brain drain, education and the diversification of the economies in the Caribbean region. ‘’For those who are familiar with the history of the festival, fifteen years ago we had an empty canvas, no formal institutional training programmes, very little content on television, advertisments being created abroad etc. Today we can see University programmes in Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Barbados and Guyana. We have seen award winning animated content and intellectual properties being pitched at international Animation conferences and the opening up of outsourcing opportunities for studios in the region. This shows that with consistent support and investment we can create our own paradigm shift” The IDB Animae Caribe Animated Exhibition is carded for 14th of April to end of July. Additional information can be acquired on the festival website http://www.animaecaribe.com
Camille Selvon Abrahams can be contacted for quotes, interviews on
Email: cabrahams@animaecaribe.com
For additional information contact
Roxanne Colthrust
Email: roxanne@colthrustpr.com
Mobile: 868 310 1608
