It’s now the Negril Universal Film Festival

In Gareth Cobran’s world, change is essential to creative growth. That philosophy is reflected in his decision to rechristen the annual cultural event he founded, the Skylark Film Festival, as the Negril Universal Film Festival (NUFF).

For Cobran, the name change is aligned with his expansive view of what the film festival entails, and the long-term potential he sees for the north coast town of Negril. “This is year seven of the festival, and we have expanded it to four nights this year,” said the NUFF ideator and sought-after director of photography, whose passion project is scheduled to welcome film enthusiasts to the beachfront venue next month.

The rebrand — which Cobran announced last week in an Instagram video upload shot at Skylark Negril Beach Resort — came “as [the event] was becoming more of a festival, and not just for screening films.

“We started adding educational components where we had international industry insiders coming in to impart knowledge, and also developed a pitch competition for aspiring filmmakers to creatively sell their ideas to a judging panel and audiences,” shared Cobran.

The dynamic offerings of the former Skylark Film Festival kept upping the ante. Hollywood actress, screenwriter and director Victoria Rowell shared with attendees in 2022 how she made low-budget films to sell to BET. A year later, Academy Award-nominated cinematographer Bradford Young dropped pearls of wisdom on his technical gifts and eventful journey in the biz. “Bradford’s session was a very moving workshop. We have been trying to grow the festival in that way where it’s not just about film screenings,” Cobran told Sunday Entertainment. “It’s everything around film as well, so we get the [educational] insights, and also get the networking possibilities.

That all-encompassing outlook even had Cobran strategising on mounting an expo this year, integrated into the rebranded NUFF. “We had wanted different companies to bring their film gear products to showcase. The space is ripe for it, and the soil is fertile right now, and we want to plant the seed. I’m working on it for next year. Usually, if you’re a filmmaker here, you have to go to a trade show in the States or the United Kingdom, but no one has brought it to Jamaica,” he explained. Conference space for the proposed expo has already been scoped out and should all be finalised for the festival’s next iteration.

What is assured is a diverse combination of 20 short films and documentaries at this year’s festival. As NUFF’s head cook and bottle washer, naturally, Cobran’s mood transforms into visible excitement to spill details. “There’s definitely growing interest in the festival ... . Last year, we had just under 100 submissions. This year, we had over 2,700. Truth be told, we signed up to the FilmFreeway platform, which opens us up to the festival market and gave us access to more filmmakers, so we got a whole lot more submissions.”

The huge uptick in interest, however, did not necessarily align with the criteria of films being targeted to screen at NUFF. Detailing the established mandate of his festival brainchild, Cobran said: “What we are really trying to do is showcase films that give you more of what the diaspora experience is. The first [criterion for us is] Jamaican films. We’ve opened more to Caribbean films, as well as films from Africa, as well as those that celebrate the black experience.”

Against this backdrop, more than 170 submissions that originated from India were not accepted. Several Iranian entries were also rejected. “That was the process, going through and watching to see what really works and what we thought best for our audience and fit our criteria,” he further explained about the rounds of deliberation.

Eleven short films with ties to the island made the cut to be screened this year. These include FarEye by British-Jamaican director Hayden McLean about a young boy fleeing an abusive home and finding refuge in a Rastafarian commune; Bright Sparks from Lesley-Ann Wanliss, a family drama centred around the aftermath of a tragedy; and Sekai Smart-Macaulay’s Harvest, a narrative that Cobran summarises as “a family going through the hardships of self-reliance in the hills of Jamaica”.

On the documentary front, Reggae Girlz will have its official Jamaican premiere at NUFF on October 10. Co-directed by Trish Dalton and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, the documentary tracks The Rock’s football players Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw, Trudi Carter and Deneisha Blackwood, talking about their journey to the Women’s World Cup finals in Morocco. “That’s a very powerful documentary,” Cobran reflected. “Just the adversity they went through and from the people they shouldn’t be going through it [with]. I think it’s going to be a piece that is going to invoke national pride, and I’m looking forward to the audience watching that one.”

Also on the docket is Listen to Me, an exploration of the maternal health crisis faced by black women in the United States, directed by Kanika Harris and Stephanie Etienne, which will screen on October 11. “That documentary has been getting a good run in the States right now, and looks at three different women and their maternity experiences in the public healthcare systems and, for lack of a better word, the horrors they went through.” Minister of Health and Wellness Christopher Tufton will sit in for a post-documentary panel session. “We’re bringing Listen To Me here so we can have a serious conversation and address issues a little more. That’s one of the things we want the festival to do, not just speak on issues but find solutions,” Cobran told Sunday Entertainment.

The highlight reel at NUFF will also spotlight the 25th anniversary screening of Stephanie Black’s documentary Life and Debt on October 8. The 2001 feature by the American filmmaker offered a deep dive into the social and economic fallout for Jamaica after globalisation. A panel session will follow with Black and retired economics professor Dr Michael Witter, moderated by Reuben Hussey. There will also be a screening of two episodes of the current SKY-TV mini-series, Possession, directed by Storm Saulter on October 9. A question-and-answer session with the filmmaker who shot the five-part limited series between Jamaica and Bristol will follow.

For Skylark Negril Beach Resort chairman and chief executive officer, Paul Salmon, the seven-year association with both Cobran and his creative undertaking has been a match made in heaven. “Gareth understood something from the beginning that is easy to overlook. Negril itself is one of the festival’s greatest assets. There are many film festivals around the world, but there aren’t many where you can watch a Jamaican film outdoors barefoot on Seven Mile Beach with the Caribbean Sea a few feet away. That immediately gives the festival an identity and a sense of place,” Salmon shared. “But Gareth’s vision goes beyond the setting. The opportunity is for Negril to become an annual gathering place for Jamaican, Caribbean and international filmmakers. Somewhere films are screened, certainly, but also where ideas are exchanged, collaborations begin and new projects conceived.”

It’s a script Cobran has long thought of writing into reality. “I come from an era where we used to have Spring Break in Negril, and I know how Negril can accommodate waves of people and entertain them for weeks. I know I can have a festival that runs for a week with thousands of people coming in, with multiple screening spaces where you have to decide which one to go,” said Cobran.

While NUFF is staying put at its longtime Skylark home this year for screenings and workshops, Cobran said, for next year, “the plan definitely is to incorporate more of Negril into the festival. We’re thinking of going off-property at Skylark to their sister property Rockhouse for premium film screenings on the sunset deck, doing workshops at Pushcart and special events by the Farm pergola. Those are things we are looking at now for next year.”

For the time being, though, the festival organiser remains pleased at how far things have come. “I’m very pleased with the growth. Sometimes I think I’m a bit anxious and want things to grow faster, and maybe that frustrates me sometimes, but I know and see that it’s growing.”

NUFF will run from October 8 to 11 at Skylark Negril Beach Resort.

entertainment@gleanerjm.com

Editor's note: The print version of this story, published on Sunday, September 13, incorrectly identified Skylark General Manager Omar Tomlinson as Derwin Tomlinson.