Sunday, May 20, 2012

Ebb and Flow-Art, Circumstance and Change

It's taken me a couple of weeks to write this post. I haven't written in this blog in forever. Life takes charge sometimes and you have to let it flow or ebb if you don't want to get caught in the undercurrent, so I had to ebb and flow a bit before I came back to it. 

"Nou Sove" has taken a bit longer than anticipated (which is the case with docs sometimes). "Sove Nou" (http://kijikmultimedia.com/sovenou) our first Haiti documentary is finally finished. Really excited to get it out to the world. It's packed full of information I feel the world should know about the magical country that is Haiti.



I thought Sove Nou and Nou Sove would come out together as they actually work in tandem "Sove Nou" touching on history and key points that have brought Haiti to where she is now and "Nou Sove" about people and organizations doing things to make a change. 


Ebb and Flow. 


But, that's the way it works sometimes. First, the earthquake in Haiti changed the dynamics of Haiti and consequently Nou Sove, then an internal earthquake happened. I found out that the disc in between the last two vertebrate in my back disintegrated.


Pain. 


That slowed me a bit as the earthquake has slowed Haiti, but my resolve is strong, so I rallied and forged ahead. Sometimes it takes a bit of pain to make change happen or perhaps change happens to address the pain. Haiti is strong and as I've said before, I feel the country can have a dramatic shift. But it will take a dynamic, multi-tiered effort to push it. 

Haiti was once one of the top tourist destinations in the Caribbean and there are efforts now that are pushing for that to happen again. And many efforts to push for change. So we'll see. For now I hope to present a bit of movement that's happening now and historically with Nou Sove, Sove Nou and the feature film "Tears for Revolution" in what I call the Ayiti Trilogie.

As we finished one chapter with "Sove Nou" we're starting up again on "Nou Sove". As I said it's taken me a  couple of weeks to write this post. I usually post directly after a production cycle, but I'm taking things a bit slower now.  

We started production again  because it was time and I had the opportunity to interview an amazing person a couple of weeks ago, Jeanguy Saintus the founder of Haiti's premiere dance ensemble Ayikodans. He founded the company over two decades ago and since then he's brought his style, flair and world class dance to so many in Haiti and internationally. 


What I didn't expect was his insight and deliberation on what Haiti is, what he feels can bring about and effect change and what needs to happen for the arts to flourish. That's not to say I didn't feel he would have strong opinions and feelings about it, I just didn't expect the openness and candidness from the onset. It's refreshing. Often times it takes quite a bit of cajoling and prodding to see where someone is on issues, at least when it comes to having them in front of the camera. But this was not the case with Jeanguy. 


Art circumstance and change.


The arts I feel can make things happen, can change people in ways no other medium can. Through art one can challenge, one can live, breath feelings, attitudes and beliefs. Art touches the heart and soul. it works for the artist that is infusing heart and soul into their work and for the participant who experiences that heart and soul in one way or the other. The arts allows us to, if even for a brief moment feel in touch with our inner self. Whether it's watching a movie, listening to music, reading a novel or watching an incredible dance piece, the arts allow us to let go. 

And how has the arts fared in Haiti? After the earthquake Ayikodans were on the verge of shutting down. One of the premier dance company's of Haiti was going to have to close. Jeanguy told me that there is no real performance space in the capitol. This is something we take for granted here, a place for artists to grow, to change for the better. The circumstance was dire for Ayikodans. But change came in the form of outreach and something beautiful happened. The collective at the Arsht Center, one of Miami's premier performance spaces was looking for a way to help after the earthquake. They moved to help in one way and were taken in another direction when they were connected with Jeanguy and Ayikodans. 

From the Arsht Center website. "A little over a year ago, the Adrienne Arsht Center's President and CEO John Richard, alongside The Miami Herald's World Editor, John Yearwood, made a trip to visit disaster-strewn Haiti. On his journey to understand how the Arsht Center could make a meaningful contribution to Haiti's recovery, John was introduced to the country's premier dance ensemble, AYIKODANS, a company that was then on the brink of closing their business for good."

Ayikodans were commissioned to perform at The Arsht Center last year and many were moved. A large donation was made by the Coastal Construction Group that kept Ayikodans from closing.  The Arsht Center was provided with an incredible dance presence, one of the most powerful I've seen. One need was met with outreach. Ebb and flow. 

Ayikodans continue, through the pain and tears of the earthquake they rise. They will be able to touch many in Haiti, as their sold out performances have touched so many here. They have an outreach program for youth that want to learn dance and the younger dancers cycle through to perhaps grow and become part of the larger whole. And although Jeanguy speaks on the myriad of problems Haiti faces, for now his company can help to send a message of heart and soul, of change and hope that through dire circumstance with heightened resolve anything is possible.

Ayikodans perform their second Arsht Center commission on May 25 & 26 with a  Modern Dance Master Class on May 22, 2012.



Ayikodans info: http://www.ayikodans.com/

Thursday, January 20, 2011

The Empowerment Project

The Empowerment Project from KijiK Multimedia on Vimeo.



Took a little detour for a side project. Back to editing this week.

The Empowerment Project was organized to showcase the power of Haiti, the effect the country has had historically on the world and luminaries that are working to help the country to restore it's former glory. Featuring work by Marc Baptiste, Presscott McDonald, Frank Isman and Kevin Sharpley, the project was curated by Myrdith Leon-McCormick.


The Empowerment project debuted at The Haiti Art Expo Presented by Plum TV along with its co-chairman Jerry Powers, Michael Capponi and Jeff Feldman. Hosted by Venus Williams, Haitian born World Welterweight Champion Boxer Andre Berto. The event kicked off during Art Basel Miami, one of the biggest art shows in the world.





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The Empowerment Project sold many portraits including two purchased by Venus Williams. The project will be expanded and is currently being procured for development as a book.


The following poem was a part of the multi-media presentation:


Haiti Empowered

there is power in haiti
haiti is power
year day hour
no matter
alpha we're strong
omega is long away
pray if you may
but
we stay
strong
and empowered

there is power in haiti
haiti is power
haiti is in power
haiti is empowered h

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Back to business

We have been on hiatus, first due to the earthquake and working for efforts to help rebuild,

















then the editors father passed away and then mine two months ago. But we're back in the saddle and getting back to business. Here's the first profile teaser from the Cape Haitien trip:





Much more to come...

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Moving forward 2

We've completed a mini trailer for "Nou Sove"



You can also view it on our temp micro site:

www.kijikmultimedia.com/nousove

Also we're very pleased that Wycleff's sister Melky Jean has featured our Nou Sove profile piece on her on her non profit organization Carma Foundation website:

http://www.carmafoundation.org/


The earthquake has changed so much in regards to Haiti. Many from around the world now have come to help and many more have pledged to help. I give kudos to those who have and challenge those who have pledged to follow through. It is sad news indeed that President Clinton has suffered another blow to the heart while pushing for change for Haiti. The history of Haiti is indeed heartbreaking and has broken many hearts. As President Clinton has been saying in many of his talks since the earthquake, there was a feeling right before the earthquake that tremendous change was happening for Haiti. I feel it was to happen because it was from the ground up. I have dedicated the last few posts of this blog to side initiatives that had happened as a result of the earthquake and of my work in and for Haiti, but please have a look at the first post and read up until now. I hope it is translated my feeling that change was coming. I hope and pray that all efforts for Haiti create the dynamic change necessary to make the country whole. I don't feel I'm doing anything to help Haiti, I feel Haiti has helped me. Historically and otherwise. I and my company have many projects on many issues of social equality, not just Haiti. It's really not about helping, for in helping others, we are helping ourselves. Everyone has needed a helping hand at some point and I feel no one should forget that. Whether the hand was large or small. It's not just Africa, or Bosnia or Haiti, it's many countries and many places. One never knows from one day to the next where the chips may fall and if they do fall hope there is someone there to give you one when you need it.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

From CineInstitute Director David Bell

This from CineInstute Director David Bell:

Ciné Institute Director David Belle reports from Port-au-Prince:
"I have been told that much US media coverage paints Haiti as a tinderbox ready to explode. I'm told that lead stories in major media are of looting, violence and chaos. There could be nothing further from the truth.
"I have traveled the entire city daily since my arrival. The extent of damages is absolutely staggering. At every step, at every bend is one horrific tragedy after another; homes, businesses, schools and churches leveled to nothing. Inside every mountain of rubble there are people, most dead at this point. The smell is overwhelming. On every street are people -- survivors -- who have lost everything they have: homes, parents, children, friends. "NOT ONCE have we witnessed a single act of aggression or violence. To the contrary, we have witnessed neighbors helping neighbors and friends helping friends and strangers. We've seen neighbors digging in rubble with their bare hands to find survivors. We've seen traditional healers treating the injured; we've seen dignified ceremonies for mass burials and residents patiently waiting under boiling sun with nothing but their few remaining belongings. A crippled city of two million awaits help, medicine, food and water. Most haven't received any. "Haiti can be proud of its survivors. Their dignity and decency in the face of this tragedy is itself staggering."
David Belle, January 17th, 2010 Go to Ciné Institute's website for latest photos and footage coming from the students in Jacmel:

http://cineinstitute.com

Saturday, January 16, 2010

more support and initiatives

The CineInstitute of Haiti needs material and support to get media out and help save lives! Please visit their website : www.cineinstitute.com.

Here is another huge initiative underway in conjunction with Hollywood Unites for Haiti:
Ebene is organizing a drive through their retailers and other businesses to collect food, clothing, ect... Items collected will be given to Hollywood Unites For Haiti to properly allocate. You can also make a donation on their site at www.hufh.org Locations that we will be picking up from are listed below, along with other ways that you can help. We will need volunteers to pick up boxes once filled. Please contact fayola.nicaisse@yahoo.com

1) Myra and Company
7313 SW 59th Court
Miami, FL

2) Sudsies Dry Cleaners
6786 Collins Avenue
Miami Beach, FL

3) American Apothecary of Kendall
12538 N. Kendall Drive
Miami, FL
Mon - Sat 10am to 6 pm.

4) South Florida Chiropractic Center
12673 South Dixie Hwy.
Miami, FL

5) Luna Azul of Miami
12308 SW 127th Ave.
Miami, FL

Whole Foods is accepting donations at check out. Please donate at register.

Other Locations Collecting sent to me by a coordinator for Whole Foods:

Toussaint L’Overture High School in Boynton Beach at (561) 738-9800, 654-1048, or 414-5464
Accepting Bottled Water and Emergency Medical Supplies

Florida Atlantic University at (561) 889-5498 (Serge Sincere)
Putting together a Haitian Relief Event at the Tom Oxley Centeron the FAU campus this Friday at 10am in order to collect items to be shipped to Haiti.

True Tabernacle at 3772 S. Military Trail, LW, 33461 (561) 935-9780

St. Ignatius Catholic Church at 9999 N. Military Trail, P.B.Gardens, Fl. 33410, at the Outreach Center. Contact Person: Sandy Kutcel (Director of Outreach) - (561) 627-7478

WORLD HARVEST MISSIONS3357 Pine Hurst Dr.Lake Worth, FL 33467Contact: Miriam Frederick (cell)561-628-6876 Office: 561-868-5005PALM BEACH GARDENS

Maranatha Church2575 Lone Pine RoadPalm Beach Gardens, FL 33420Contact: John Green- 561-622-8330FT. MEYERS/ LEHIGH ACRES

Lehigh Medical Center1500 Lee Blvd.Lehigh Acres, FL. 33936Contact number: 239-369-2101WEST PALM BEACH

Winners Church365 Jog Rd.West Palm Beach, FL 33415Contact: Katy– 561-683-9512 (Red Truck in front)

Good Shepherd United Methodist Church2341 So. Military TrailWest Palm Beach, FL 33415Contact: Gator Spaulding 965-4311x230

LAKE WORTHTrinity Church International7255 So. Military TrailLake Worth, FL 33463Contact: Tommy Peters 965-4166

MIAMILife Impact Center14040 NW 7th Ave.Miami, FL 33168Contact: Madeline Hundy-305-953-5433

PAHOKEENew Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church of Pahokee502 Boone Ave.Pahokee 33476Contact: Carl Morrison 561-965-7202 church: 561-924-5872-924-2863

BELLE GLADESt. Johns First Missionary Baptist Church600 SW 8th St.Belle Glade, FL 33430Contact: Robert Rease 561-996-1474

INDIAN RIVER CO./ PORT ST. LUCIE/ STUART/ FT. PIERCE/ VERO BEACHGlendale Baptist Church790 27th Ave.Vero Beach, FL 32968Contact: Pastor Mark Richardson 772-562-4848

FT. PIERCE In the Image of Christ Inc.1203 Orange Ave.Ft. Pierce, FL 34950Contact: Tawanne Owens 772-940-4023

Friday, January 15, 2010

Hollywood Unites for Haiti

Hollywood Unites for Haiti the non profit organization for Jimmy Jean Louis actor from the hit NBC show "Heroes" has set up a relief fund:

http://hufh.org/contribute.html

He will be traveling to Haiti in the next few days.

Project Medishare

I met with Dr. Barth Green founder and Ellen Powers director of The University of Miami/ Project Medishare initiative a couple of weeks ago for my documentary Nou Sove. They are in Haiti now on the ground with an 11 person team and need support. They are bringing in Doctors, Nurses and health care proffesionals and have been working in Haiti for many years. Here is more info and ways to donate to them.

blog-http://projectmedishare.wordpress.com

facebook- http://www.facebook.com/pages/Project-Medishare-for-Haiti-Inc/103687956624?ref=s

donate-http://tinyurl.com/yarw8zm

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Please help for Haiti, a notice that was passed to me.

So sad and diisheartening the situation. http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/01/12/haiti.earthquake/index.html

Here's some help links, I'll be adding as I find out more:

Hollywood Unites for Haiti (HUFH) http://www.hufh.org

Pan American Development Fund (PADF) http://www.padf.org

World Vision-http://www.worldvision.org

Carma- http://www.carmafoundation.org/

Yelle Haiti- http://www.yele.org/

Sant La- http://www.santla.org/

http://www.theglobalsyndicate.org/get_involved.html

Partners in Health (Paul Farmer's organization) - Zanmi Lasante (“Partners In Health” in Haitian Kreyol) is PIH’s flagship project – the oldest, largest, most ambitious, and most replicated. http://www.pih.org/where/Haiti/Haiti.html

Doctors Without Borders - Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international medical humanitarian organization. They in 1999, MSF received the Nobel Peace Prize. http://doctorswithoutborders.org/

Ox-Fam is a confederation of 14 like-minded organizations working together and with partners and allies around the world to end poverty and injustice, from campaigning to responding to emergencies.
http://www.oxfam.org/


Haiti Relief Truck at 1st Street & Alton Road, Miami Beach- http://www.facebook.com/n/?event.php&eid=253677477233&mid=1b7f2acG1f5da3ecG3af995dG7

Either you can use your cell phone to text “Yele” to 501501, which will automatically donate $5 to the Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund (it will be charged to your cell phone bill), or you can visit Yele.org and click on DONATE

Red Cross-http://www.redcross.org/
You can also text 'HAITI' to 90999 to donate $10 to American Red Cross relief for Haiti. The charge will show up on your next cell phone bill.

Maeva Renaud is doing much: http://www.facebook.com/maevatheartist?ref=mf

drop off location:
Preecha's Cuts: (954) 968-1364
W. Atlantic Blvd, Margate,FL 33063
(Intersection Location Atlantic Blvd And St Rd 441)
For Any other Questions:
Felix Julienne (954) 868-8656 or Rodererer Morisset (954) 601-6219


My thoughts: http://nousove.blogspot.com/2010/01/why-haiti.html

Notice and more help links and drop off points:

In the wake of news that an unprecedented 7.0 earthquake has hit the already impoverished land of Haiti, we call on humanity to lend a helping hand. The earthquake has struck just 10 miles from the capital of port-au-prince, where an approximate 2 million people reside. Officials are already branding this a catastrophe of major proportions. A not for profit organization, Pwoteje Timoun is calling on you for your help. We are not only asking for donations of food and clothing but also of physical persons willing to travel to haiti to volunteer their time and effort to help those most in need. In the midst of this untimely disaster, the people of Haiti need your help, help not only for basic necessities such as food, clothing and water,but also your helping hand to clear roads of rubble, and to assist in finding members of family households that are missing and trapped under the rubble. We can not do this alone. Any and all assistance is welcome. Your help is needed immediately. The next few hours after this disaster will be critical.

FT. LAUDERDALE DROP:Donations can be dropped of @ Pwotege Timoun, 11911 NW 32nd Manor, Sunrise, FL 33323 where boxes will be set up for donations of non perishable food items and clothing. We are organizing a group of people to go to Haiti as early as Thursday. If you are able to volunteer your time please contact Gathy Brutus. I can be reached at gathy.brutus@gmail.com or (954) 829-2636.

MIAMI DROP: Haitian American Youth of Tomorrow (HAYOT), 1348 NE 147th Street, Miami, L 33161. Contact: “Teacher” Carline Paul for more info at (305) 509-2313 or hayotinc@aol.com or teachcarline@aol.com.



I, alongside many other Haitian nationals have not made any contact with our families in wake of the earthquake, but we pray for their safety. In the meantime, we come together and organize to bring help to those in need.

Do not fear my people of Haiti, help is on the way!!! God Bless...

PLEASE PASS IT ALONG
THANK YOU

--
Gathy Brutus
Pwoteje Timoun/Protect the Children, Inc.
(954) 829-2636
gathy.brutus@gmail.com

Haiti has given so much, please help during this trying time after the devastating earthquake:


Please visit for more info:

http://kijikmultimedia.com/nousove

http://kijikmultimedia.com/sovenou

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Why Haiti? The Earthquake, disaster and the need to help.


Why Haiti? So many ask me this question about my projects and reasons for pushing so hard for Haiti. Why anywhere? It could be Bosnia in the trying times or any country where the population is moving to have the same opportunities as others. I didn't choose Haiti. Sometimes things come, fall into your way and you make a way for things to happen. Haiti came into my course and I'm so much better for it in so many ways. I am privileged and understand the privilege I've had the ability to act upon. I could have been born anywhere, to anyone, but was born here, raised with many advantages. I've had many challenges, lived in many places, some good some not so much. I understand that when much is given, much is expected. This is why. I'm not Haitian. I could be from anywhere, born at any moment. Do we know from one day to the next if we'll still have the same privilege.

The earthquake in Haiti is disheartening on so many levels. We have the opportunity, have had the opportunity to do something, something big. If we do, if we uplift our neighbors, our brothers and sisters it will have an effect that will resonate across the globe. I recently gave a speech at the Miami Dade County reception for Haiti Independence month. Mayor Alvarez gave the key to the County to both Haiti Ambassador Raymond Joseph and Jimmy Jean Louis last Friday. I gave a gift bag to Jimmy Jean Louis on behalf of he Miami Dade Film Office and a speech about Jimmy's contributions and my love for Haiti. Ambassador Joseph said something in his speech that took me by surprise. I knew it already, but it didn't register fully until that moment. Haiti was the second Independent nation in the Western Hemisphere. After Haiti, many nations followed. Many nations were helped to independence by Haiti including the United States. Battles in Louisiana, Georgia, even Chicago. In the Revolutionary war no less.

So we have another opportunity to do whats right. My heart and soul goes out to my friends and family there and here. I have given a lot for Haiti and will continue to do so. Why, because Haiti has given so much, needs less than that which has been given so freely and is a country that is in my heart and soul. What will we gain, we will gain the strength, spirit, soul, minds and determination of a nation that has helped so many. Here's a few organizations doing something now and a message I was sent a short while ago:

Nou Sove

Hollywood Unites for Haiti (HUFH)

Pan American Development Fund (PADF)


World Vision


In the wake of news that an unprecedented 7.0 earthquake has hit the already impoverished land of Haiti, we call on humanity to lend a helping hand. The earthquake has struck just 10 miles from the capital of port-au-prince, where an approximate 2 million people reside. Officials are already branding this a catastrophe of major proportions. A not for profit organization, Pwoteje Timoun is calling on you for your help. We are not only asking for donations of food and clothing but also of physical persons willing to travel to haiti to volunteer their time and effort to help those most in need. In the midst of this untimely disaster, the people of Haiti need your help, help not only for basic necessities such as food, clothing and water,but also your helping hand to clear roads of rubble, and to assist in finding members of family households that are missing and trapped under the rubble. We can not do this alone. Any and all assistance is welcome. Your help is needed immediately. The next few hours after this disaster will be critical.

FT. LAUDERDALE DROP:Donations can be dropped of @ Pwotege Timoun, 11911 NW 32nd Manor, Sunrise, FL 33323 where boxes will be set up for donations of non perishable food items and clothing. We are organizing a group of people to go to Haiti as early as Thursday. If you are able to volunteer your time please contact Gathy Brutus. I can be reached at gathy.brutus@gmail.com or (954) 829-2636.

MIAMI DROP: Haitian American Youth of Tomorrow (HAYOT), 1348 NE 147th Street, Miami, L 33161. Contact: “Teacher” Carline Paul for more info at (305) 509-2313 or hayotinc@aol.com or teachcarline@aol.com.



I, alongside many other Haitian nationals have not made any contact with our families in wake of the earthquake, but we pray for their safety. In the meantime, we come together and organize to bring help to those in need.

Do not fear my people of Haiti, help is on the way!!! God Bless...

PLEASE PASS IT ALONG
THANK YOU

--
Gathy Brutus
Pwoteje Timoun/Protect the Children, Inc.
(954) 829-2636
gathy.brutus@gmail.com

Friday, December 11, 2009

Melky Jean interview vignette

We just cut our first vignette from documentary footage on the incredible Melky Jean. It was done rather quick and with a more direct and deliberate approach due to time constraints. The documentary will be more stylized and we shot the original interview using two cameras with a lot of coverage, but I feel it drives the point home.



Next up Mr. Jimmy Jean Louis, who is the focal character of the film. His interview is incredible and his trailer vignette will showcase what the documentary is about. I'm extremely excited as the film shapes up and we head toward post production.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

At long last

So I haven't posted in...forever. But I've been working hard on another initiative that has taken much of my time and energy. All of what I've put into making the documentaries happen has manifested in an incredible parallel initiative.


more on it later....

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

The living, ghosts, death and life

Just came back from Haiti. Port Au Prince seemed smaller to me. I rather know my way around now. The city is everything they say it is. Overcrowded, streets lined with garbage, pigs, goats, people driving like tomorrow doesn't exist, cars, motorcycles, bikes, mules, everything goes.

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Pollution (like many major cities) and when the rains came, flooding instantly.

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But the people flock there for the dream, the dream of making more money, a better way of life. It is the epicenter and financial center for all that's worth. And there is much life there, hustle and bustle and hustle if you're not careful. And people making a way, some big others not as much, some stuck, some living off luck and a prayer, some living in big ways according to western standards.

I went for three things this time. Barry Gordon, the director of Miami Dade College's film program told me of a film he wanted to shoot in Haiti. This was last year and when I came back from Haiti in December I made the connection. I told him I have the connects, he said let's do it and off we went last week. I was able to connect him with people and companies in Port Au Price and the film school in Jakmel, which was quite incredible.
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More on that later.

I brought over 80 shoes, cleats and hats for Hollywood Unites for Haiti donated by Miami Country Day Prep School, Lehrman Community Day School and The Green Agency one of the top talent agencies in Miami. I stopped off to my friends at The St. Damien Hospital and dropped off half and by the end of the trip I dropped off the other half to Jonas Petit who runs HUFH on the ground in Haiti.
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It's small step, but a start of what I hope will be big and major things to come.

The documentary was to be a minor point and I had really no intention of shooting anything, maybe taking some photos and setting up any interviews or footage for next time. I took a small DV camera primarily for discovery. But I used it as much as the HD camera I took on the other trips. There were many stories and stories inside of stories which couldn't wait. The sound and video will just have to be fixed in post. There was Paula Hyppolite one of the administrators of the CineInstitute, the film school in Jakmel. She moved back to Haiti eight years ago to the mountains and started a coffee bean and cocoa business.

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She makes some of the best I've tasted (and I would consider myself an afficianado) and hires locals to work and produce the beans. And Christophe, the owner of The Hotel Cyvaldier where we stayed. First of all; beautiful on every count, location off the coast, rustic, greenery, scenery and the je ne ce quois.
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He also runs the school that his father started 14 years ago called the SOS Enfants. It started with two grades and now goes from pre-school to ninth grade. And provides one hot meal a day.
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There will be many stories in posts to come and of course the documentary. For now the tales of those living for Haiti, the ghosts of the past which haunt the island nation and those that guard it, the death of the old and the life of a new Haiti, the Haiti that was the Pearl of the Antilles lives underground now, but will live again. The ghosts told me so.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Cape Haitien, La Citadel, ghosts and the living.

Ghosts are real. Ive seen them here:

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This is The Citadel in Cape Haitien. It is the largest fort in the Western Hemisphere.

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The fort was commissioned by Henri Christophe between 1805 and 1820 to fight off attacks from the French, but was never used as the island nation was never really physically threatened after Haiti's fight for independence in 1804.

The ghosts of threat still exist though. Although Haiti has maintained it's independence, the challenges faced seem at times ready to topple the country through the sheer magnitude and weight of the problems. It will change though, the ghosts of La Citadel told me while I stayed there. And I did stay there.

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Four days in a little room, damp like camping, cold at night from the masonry and eerie. And it was an amazing experience, one of the best in my life.

More on the Cape Haitien, The Citadel, ghosts and the living on the next blog post.

Saturday, April 18, 2009

New York, back in production, back to basics, more to come...

So I haven't posted in a while, because it's been so busy not only with Nou Sove, but with other KijiK projects as well. We have been taking in a lot more production work, CineVisun our non-profit Film and Media industry support organization just wrapped up a weekly Sunday event that went for two months and we're wrapping up post on Sove Nou. But work on Nou Sove has been heating up. We just cameback from our second big production leg in New York and it was great.
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And we're heading to Cape Hatien on Monday.

The first part of production in New York was covering Jimmy and his involvement in the movement I 2 am Haiti as the spokesperson/ambassador for the Pan American Development Foundation.
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While there he shot the first Public Service Announcement for the campaign.

Next Jimmy co-hosted an event for the MTV Unplugged Caribbean showcase which was an incredible look at some of the best current and up and coming Caribbean artists in the world.

“The world” was an omnipresent theme this trip. We are hoping to bring the plight and fight of and for Haiti to the world with the Sove Nou trilogy, in case I haven't mentioned that it is indeed three projects that compromise one concept. The first parts are the documentaries "Sove Nou" and "Nou Sove" and the third is feature narrative film "Tears for Revolution" which we are currently developing to start when Nou Sove is in post production. The worlds of Haiti and New York are more alike than many might think, at least the distinction of populated areas. NYC is filled and over the brim with the hustle and bustle of living, people moving as machinery, timed, synchronized in and out of buildings, subways, cabs, night and day.
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No care of light and dark, simply getting it done. High energy, high octane, making ways from the connectivity. As I've written in many posts Haiti is the same, the people moving in unison, like a dance.
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The cogs churning, dependent on the wheels to turn for the next day to turn to weeks and years. This is the key, as it's infectious. One moves up, then another and another with information, knowledge and connection internally and externally with the world. All. It's what makes New York a global epicenter. Movement is what makes Haiti work period. Upward growth will move the country forward.

Information processing theory dictates that our minds work like computers with short term memory (RAM) which operates our daily routines and long term memory (hard drive), which is our history. I feel novel experience (cognitive dissodance) increases the productivity of our short term memory, which in turn expands our long term memory and the ability to process our history quicker, relate it to our circumstance at the given moment and/or project for future growth. The more relevant the information, the better suited we are to make things happen for ourselves and others. Therefore the more connection we have to the global strata, the better suited we are to maneuver in this new age, the technological revolution. Education does it, is uplifting in every way. The more informed we are, the more we demand that change happens.

While in New York we stayed in the Millennium Hilton across from where the Twin Towers once stood.
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It was amazing and at the same time eerie and haunting.
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It's a lesson that destruction can happen to anyone, anywhere and we must care no matter where it occurs. America came together on that day. All of us. We rallied hand in hand. But division always sets in. The machine churns regardless.

Haiti is an American story. Haitians fought in the revolutionary war. There were slaves in America, but they fought as free men coming from Haiti at that time, a free country. They fought for America's independence. The history of Haiti and America is indelibly intertwined. Haiti has suffered many debilitating blows historically and recently with five major hurricanes hitting the island nation in the last couple of years. Much of Haiti looks like a war zone due to internal problems, but also natural disaster. Many are fighting for the TPS distinction that other nations have received for similar problems and even less, that would allow expatriates and others to recover and save many lives. But that story can be found in the Sove Nou trilogy. For now production continues on Nou Sove.

The last of our New York Tour was covering the Hollywood United/ Hollywood Unites for Haiti (HUFH) celebrity soccer match and after party. Hollywood United is a celebrity soccer team run by the incredible actor Anthony Liapaglia (Without a Trace, CSI, Frasier).
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The match was to benefit Jimmy’s non-profit organization Hollywood Unites for Haiti. There were many celebrities out for the event.
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Skeet Ulrich (Jericho, The Newton Boys), Donal Logue (Max Payne, Ghost Rider), Gilles Marini (Nip, Tuck), Ethan Zohn (Survivor ,winner 2007), Costas Mandylor (Beowulf, Saw), Steve Jones (Sex Pistols), Michael Stahl David (Cloverfield, The Black Donelly’s), Photobucket
Cheryl Burke (Dancing with the Stars), members of the band “Your Vegas” Melky Jean (recording artist), Marc Baptiste (photographer) and more.

One standout and I feel has become an incredible thread in the Nou Sove saga is Michael Stahl David. When I was in Haiti in December, it was Michael’s first trip. He seemed to be enamored and drawn in by the country and the people, as many are intoxicated by the magic, power and energy the island nation holds. We spoke at a dinner a couple of days before the soccer match and he told me he was on his way back to Haiti to teach acting classes the following week and how excited he was. At the soccer match he gave an incredible interview echoing the same and bought many raffle tickets in support of HUFH.

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This is a transformation I have seen occur many times and I can see why Haiti at one time was one of the top tourist destinations in the Caribbean. Will Haiti ever be considered “The Pearl of the Antilles” again still is yet to be seen, but I do feel she will one day rise from the ashes as the phoenix, blazing a path to glory.