Our Vision Caribbean and Latino Filmmaker Podcast 🎥🎙‪️‬ Charles Alleyne and Dr. Christopher C. Odom, MFA, PhD

🎙️ On this episode, we speak with actor, filmmaker, and screenwriter Javier Carreón. We also discuss Carreón’s latest work, a short film entitled, “Dulce Sabor [Sweet Hesitation]” and the art and craft of writing, directing, and producing short films.
 
ABOUT Javier Carreón 🎬

Javier graduated from Actors Studio of Orange County and El Set. Carreón has worked in more than 40 theater and cinema productions as an actor and director. Winner of more than 10 national and international awards, including The Madero City International Film Festival’s (FICCMA) award for 2 consecutive years, Gralha International Film Award for Best Screenplay, and Horror Hazzard Film Festival for Best Horror Short Film, among others...

Connect with Javier Carreón on Facebook @javier.carreon1.

ABOUT The Madero City International Film Festival (FICCMA) 🎬

FICCMA celebrates independent cinema with freedom of expression, stories, emotions, unique moments, open windows, fragments of life, series of images and much more. FICCMA promotes the talent of both established and emerging filmmakers which positions the city of Madero as tourist attraction for its diverse culture and beautiful beaches.

Learn more about FICCMA by visiting https://www.ficcma.com or sending an email to ficcmadera@gmail.com. 
 
 
🎯 CLICK HERE to submit your film to the next "Our Vision Caribbean and Latino Film Festival" to share your work, reach your audience, and turn your dreams into reality.

Description 
On this week’s episode, Marie Kellier, Founder of the LA Carnival. We will talk to Marie about her life as a student at UCLA and wining student film writing awards when she was at UCLA and ultimately being disappointed with the film industry.
About Marie Kellier
Born in Jamaica Marie Kellier came to America as a young woman to pursue her education. As a writer, she ultimately landed at UC LA in the writer’s program. She talks about her struggles as a black woman at UCLA and all the different hurdles she had to overcome.
LA Carnival 
Marie Kellier founded LA Carnival in 1998 to bring a little piece of the Caribbean to Los Angeles but yet still maintaining a very distinctive LA feel to it. We talked about the 2024 carnival that's coming up in June in Leimert Park Village Los Angeles. We also talked about the beginning days of the carnival, the ups and downs of making the carnival happen, the hard work, and all the roadblocks she had to face in order to make this carnival happen.
 
🎯 CLICK HERE to submit your film to the next "Our Vision Caribbean and Latino Film Festival" to share your work, reach your audience, and turn your dreams into reality.

🎙️ On this episode, we speak with emerging filmmaker Áron Ferenc Kostyál about how he explores and interprets culture as a Mexican-ized Hungarian born filmmaker living in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. We also have an in-depth discussion about Áron’s latest work, a short film entitled, “Hide!”

ABOUT Áron Ferenc Kostyál 🎬

Born in Budapest, Aron Kostyal is a young mexicanized Hungarian filmmaker. His experience in a cultural clash, added to his experience editing and creating YouTube videos, has given him the knowledge and tools to make artistic short films based on Mexican life and culture.

After writing and directing the shorts “Love Cut Into Pieces”, and “Chronicle of a Victory”, “Hide”, his new short film, might be the best one yet.

Connect with Áron Ferenc Kostyál on Instagram @crepe.ye.

ABOUT Hide! 🎬

Mario, a Jr. High student, runs and hides during recess, wherever and however he can from his classmate José. Meanwhile, José searches for Mario and does everything in his power to find him. The tension between classmates culminates when one of them finally finds the other…

I chose to direct this film because of the deep message I believe it will have on each viewer. After telling the story to many friends and family members, I realized that everyone had a vastly different interpretation of it. This inspired me even more to direct the film, since, personally, I think creating a sandbox of interpretations and emotions is what all great movies should do. 

I am really happy we got permission to shoot this film in an actual school, and that we could cast real students of said school to play the characters. Creating this movie was a magical experience, one that made me re-live many childhood memories.


🎯 CLICK HERE to submit your film to the next "Our Vision Caribbean and Latino Film Festival" to share your work, reach your audience, and turn your dreams into reality.

🎙️ On this episode, we present the 12+1 Best Black Film Festivals for Emerging Independent Films and Filmmakers 🍿.

ABOUT 12+1 Best Black Film Festivals for Emerging Independent Films and Filmmakers 🎬

When I wrote my first list of the “Top 12 Black Film Festivals” in 2008 for eZineArticles, I had no idea that nearly 15 years later, it would emerge as the most-referenced and borrowed-from definitive list of Black film festivals. By popular demand, I have updated the original list with a fresh take on the “12 Best Black Film Festivals for Independent Filmmakers” in 2023.

A good film festival strategy includes applying to as many film festivals as you can with a goal of 40 festivals submissions, if you can swing it. Those 40 submissions should be evenly divided between large festivals, medium size festivals, niche festivals, and micro-film festivals.

For your niche film festival strategy targeting film festivals that specifically support emerging independent filmmakers of color, you should apply to all 12+1 of these film festivals which I have ranked in order of friendliness, impact, and likelihood of becoming an official selection.

My Black film festival selection criteria is based upon the combination of the size of the film festival slate, number of films that are curated versus programmed through open submissions, and how often the film festival programs films that do not have any high-profile Hollywood celebrities attached to the films. But if your independent film was financed with a larger budget and has stars, you definitely want to work your way through the list from the bottom up.

When your film is an official selection, you are granted an all-access pass to all the screenings, events, and activities for the film festival, including numerous insider official selection filmmaker only events and networking opportunities. After you start screening your film on the festival circuit and your film generates buzz and racks up domestic and international awards, you’ll discover that film festivals will reach out to you to screen your film, and many will pay to fly you out to the festival.

As you begin to screen rack up festival screenings and awards, please share your success stories with us, and give us and this list a shout out on social media. We want to celebrate your wins with you.


🎯 CLICK HERE to submit your film to the next "Our Vision Caribbean and Latino Film Festival" to share your work, reach your audience, and turn your dreams into reality.

🎙️ On this episode, we speak with Haitian American actor Bechir Sylvain about how to make it in Hollywood as a successful professional actor, as well as the SAG Hollywood Actors Strike. Bechir’s storied career, which includes acting for film, television, and games, includes his portrayal of the characters EJ on the TNT hit series “Claws” and Willie on BET’s “Bigger.”

ABOUT Bechir Sylvain 🎬

Bechir Sylvain is a Haitian-American actor, writer, director, and producer who played "EJ" on the TNT's hit series Claws and Willie on BET's hit series “Bigger.” A lifetime member of The Actors Studio, Bechir studied drama at Southern Methodist University and co-founded Ground Up & Rising Theater Company in Miami where he grew up after immigrating from Haiti as a teenager.

Bechir has performed at Arizona Theater Company, Gablestage, American Stage, Summer Shorts, Ground Up & Rising, Gorilla Theater and Theater 68 where he earned a Best Ensemble NAACP Theater Award win for his performance as Malcolm X in the play "The Meeting." In addition, Bechir starred in Arizona Theater Company's production of "The Royale" by Marco Ramirez as the lead playing Jay "The Sport" Jackson.

His television credits include guest starring on “Black Summer” (Netflix), “This Is Us” (NBC), “Chicago, PD” (NBC), “Better Call Saul” (AMC), “Black-ish” (ABC) “Grace and Frankie” (Netflix), “Fuller House” (Netflix), and “The Mick” (FOX). He was supporting lead in the 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment family drama “The Ultimate Life” and a had supporting role in American Zeotrope's “Life After Beth.”

Fluent in French and Haitian Creole, Bechir has appeared in over 32 national and regional commercials. He was the inaugural grand prize winner of the ABC Discovers showcase and has won Best Actor at American Black Film Festival.

Connect with Bechir Sylvain on Instagram @bechirsylvain.


🎯 CLICK HERE to submit your film to the next "Our Vision Caribbean and Latino Film Festival" to share your work, reach your audience, and turn your dreams into reality.

🎙️ On this episode, we speak with international and domestic multi-award-winner filmmaker and digital media scholar, yours truly, Dr. Christopher C. Odom, MFA, PhD, about my recent documentary short film, “Justice for George Floyd: The Tipping Point?”

ABOUT Dr. Christopher C. Odom, MFA, PhD 🎬

Dr. Christopher C. Odom earned his PhD in Texts and Technology, Digital Media at the University of Central Florida; his MFA in Film and Television from the University of California, Los Angeles; and his BA in Film and Video Production from Georgia State University. Throughout Dr. Odom’s 30-year career in the entertainment industry, as a filmmaker, Dr. Odom has produced, directed, written, shot, and/or edited +500 short and longform creative projects. In addition, for over a decade as a Course Director at Full Sail University, Dr. Odom has supervised and developed an additional +500 student short scripts and films.

Dr. Odom currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of the Our Vision Caribbean and Latino Film Festival; Vice President of Communications, Publicity, and Brand Strategy for EJO Ventures, and a Course Director for the Digital Cinematography Bachelor of Science Program (DCBS) at Full Sail University. Dr. Odom recently finished his short documentary film “Justice for George Floyd: The Tipping Point?” about the visual imagery emerging on social media from the Justice for George Floyd Protests, as a social movement. He is currently in postproduction on the feature documentary version of the same film. Learn more about Dr. Odom’s background on LinkedIn.

ABOUT “Justice for George Floyd: The Tipping Point?” 🎬

JUSTICE FOR GEORGE FLOYD: THE TIPPING POINT? is a documentary short film that explores the power of visual imagery and narrative, both online and in the real world, within social movements. The documentary was produced in partial fulfillment of my hybrid dissertation for a PhD in Texts and Technology, Digital Media from the University of Central Florida. The hybrid dissertation was an expanded version of the same topic which was comprised of a 62,000-word traditional written document, 3 code-based interactive generative scholarship artistic works, and a documentary short film.

Learn more about film and recent screenings, events, and updates at JusticeFilm2024.com.


🎯 CLICK HERE to submit your film to the next "Our Vision Caribbean and Latino Film Festival" to share your work, reach your audience, and turn your dreams into reality.