jamarchArticulet, a creative social enterprise, placed second with its video project “Breadfruit Versatile” at the recently concluded conference and awards ceremony for the 2nd Caribbean Science and Agriculture Film and Video Competition. The event took place at the Carlton Savannah Hotel in Trinidad from the 27 to the 29th of August.
Randy McLaren, Founder and CEO of Articulet was on hand to collect the prize; “we are very happy with the outcome and want to thank the organizers and sponsors for the opportunity”, stated McLaren. When asked how the idea for the video came about he had this to say, “I have a dub poem called “mi love mi breadfruit” that I have been performing since my high school days so when I saw the information about the competition I said we should enter. I am known by many as the breadfruit man so we decided to highlight the versatility of the breadfruit under the theme “adding value to local foods”.
After submitting the concept, Randy in collaboration with the group’s Artistic Director, Brian Johnson, developed the script and worked with other team members to produce the video in only two days. Brian also Directed and edited the 5 minutes film production with shooting support from Tristan Rodney. The full cast for “Breadfruit Versatile” include; Paula Bird, Shantol Jackson, Veronique Smith, Tyane Roinson, Stephen Rhae Johnson, Shola Collins and Randy McLaren.
The competition was launched in Guyana October 2013, by the Technical Centre for Agricultural Cooperation, in collaboration with Caribbean Council for Science and Technology, the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute, the University of the West Indies, Columbus Communications and Trinidad and Tobago Film Company. The aim of the competition is to encourage creative young professionals to highlight ways in which Science and technology can be leveraged for agricultural and economic development. 84 entries were initially received and narrowed to 60 teams then to 40. Over 10,000 euros in cash and prizes were awarded to the top three winners plus three sectional awards.
When asked about how the funds will be spent Randy had this to say, “The funds earned from this competition will go towards enhancing the work that we do. Articulet is in its start-up phase and in need of equipment and other resources to enhance efficiency and output. We are doing it one step at a time as we seek to add value to the creative industries and live our motto “entertain change”.
Randy and his Articulet team are not only committed to providing entertainment but inspiring social change through the use of the creative and performing arts together with the latest digital technologies. Coming out of the competition, they have decided to take the communication of Science and Agricultural information seriously and will strive to add their creative touch while doing so.
Another entry from Jamaica also came in third with their piece called “Captain V” which was an animated film while “Tree of life” from St. Lucia copped the top prize.
Media Writer
