A New Day! CaribbeanTales Launches with the Canadian Premiere of the Jimmy Jean Louis neo-noir thriller “Rattlesnakes”

Director Julius Amedume & Actor Jimmy Jean-Louis will attend the Opening Night

Toronto, August 16, 2019 – The 14th Annual CaribbeanTales International Film Festival (CTFF) opens Wednesday, September 4, 2019, with the Canadian Premiere screening of Rattlesnakes at the Royal Cinema, 608 College Street at 5:30 pm.  Stars and influencers will be arriving on the red carpet between 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm. This year’s CTFF theme is “A New Day” for Caribbean and Diaspora filmmakers to share their stories with the world.

“We are excited for the most anticipated line-up to date. The excitement around our own CEO and Founder Frances-Anne Solomon joining the Oscars Academy is the epitome of our "New Day" theme. We are living our best lives right now at this moment where we as a people and Caribbean Community are being celebrated all over the world through our accomplishments in film.”  said Diana Webley Co-Director of CTFF.

The Festival’s opener Rattlesnakes is a psychological, neo-noir thriller based on Graham Farrow’s acclaimed stage play of the same name. The film follows an intense day in the life of Los Angeles therapist Robert McQueen who has an exclusive clientele of wealthy, unhappily-married women. On his way to an appointment, he is ambushed by three masked men accusing him of sleeping with their wives. He pleads his innocence; though what he does reveal will change all of their lives forever. 

McQueen is played by Jimmy Jean-Louis, the Haitian-French actor and model best known for his role as "the Haitian" on the NBC television series Heroes. Before finding success as a model, he was homeless at times in Paris. But by the mid-'90s, he was gracing the music videos of such stars like Mariah Carey, Seal, and George Michael. Eventually, he landed his first big break in Jean-Claude Van Damme's movie Derailed.

“It’s an honour to open CTFF with a film that I produced and in which I’m also the lead actor. It’s my second time at CTFF and I feel like I’m home. The festival reflects my culture and values, I identify with the images, the music, the sounds, the spirit, the energy. But I’m most touched by the fact that CTFF is here to give us (Pan-Africans) a voice, a presence in the film arena.” said Jimmy Jean-Louis. 

Jean-Louis will be in Toronto for the Talk-Back Session following the film. He is also available for in-person interviews from September 3rd.

CTFF 2019 features eight special-themed nights of incredible on-screen storytelling from Caribbean filmmakers. This year’s line-up of feature and short films includes:

Opening Night | September 4 

Feature film: Rattlesnakes (Julius Amedume, USA, 2019)

Short: Oseyi and the Masqueraders (Dominica)

Environmental Night | September 13

Feature film: Paradise Undiscovered: The Unbreakable Virgin Islander (USVI)

Shorts: Venus and Magnet (Trinidad and Tobago) & Ms. Sugga Ep.1 (Jamaica)

French ‘N’ Free | September 13

Feature film: Fig Lady [Machann Fig La] (Haiti)

Short: The Unicorn (Guadeloupe)

Trinidad | September 14

Feature film: Moving Parts

Shorts: Three Minutes & March of the Mokos

Music | September 14

Feature film: Galsen - The Language of Souls [El Language de Las Almas] (Martinique) 

Shorts: Antonio Norales: Garifuna Guardian (USA) & Karukéra Blues (USA/Guadeloupe)

Jamaica | September 18

Feature film: Last Street

Shorts: Rockstone and Fire & Children of the Incursion 

LGBTQ2 | September 19 

Feature film: Rafiki (Kenya)

Shorts: Please See Attached (Trinidad & Tobago) & Judgement Day (Trinidad and Tobago)

Closing Night | September 20, 2019 

Feature film: Sacred Water (Belgium/Rwanda)

Shorts: Maternal (Canada), Same Old Shit (Trinidad & Tobago) & Xiomara Sranan Folktales Episode (Suriname)

Media Contact: Roger Dundas | [email protected] | Kezia Royer-Burkett | [email protected]

Rattlesnake Film Links: IMDB Page | Official Trailer | Official Poster | Official Images 

Ticket Info: Click here to buy tickets for Opening Night | Click here to buy CTFF festival passes

Click here to apply for Media Accreditation

About CaribbeanTales Media Group 

CaribbeanTales (CTMG) is a group of media companies that produces, markets, and exhibits Caribbean-themed films for regional and international distribution, including CaribbeanTales Worldwide Distribution, CaribbeanTales Inc -  a registered Charity in Canada. Activities include The CaribbeanTales International Film Festival now in its fourteenth year; the renowned CaribbeanTales Incubator (CTI) a year-round development and production hub for Caribbean and Caribbean Diaspora Producers; Caribbeantales-TV a VOD  streaming service for Caribbean films; and CaribbeanTalesFlix, their production arm. 

About CaribbeanTales International Film Festival

The CaribbeanTales International Film Festival (CTFF) is now in its fourteenth year and will take place from September 4 - 20, 2019, at various locations throughout the City of Toronto.

CTFF celebrates the talents of established and emerging filmmakers of Caribbean heritage who practise their art across the Caribbean Diaspora worldwide – including Canada and the Caribbean, Europe, the Americas, Africa, China, India, and the Middle East. CTFF presents a multi-ethnic mix of exciting and dynamic films that showcase diverse and shared stories and cultures.

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