Manifesto has the hook up yet again!!!

You gotta act quick though. We are giving tickets/guest spots to see a conversation w/ Pam Grier Tonight to kick off Black History Month.

'An Evening with Pam Grier' is presented by TD in celebration of Black History Month, CFC (Canadian Film Centre) and Clement Virgo are pleased to present a special evening in conversation with iconic actress Pam Grier.

One of the most iconic bonitas in the free world is here in toronto today... some call her foxy others coffy, kit  or jackie...call her what you will, just know that she's bad! Visit the CFC website for full event info here.

To win a pair of tickets  all you have to do is name Grier’s character in the L word & email rsvp@themanifesto.ca (before 6pm Thursday Feb. 2) with "Pam Grier" in the subject line.

Shout to our friends Brian and the CFC crew for connecting us.

http://cfccreates.com/bhm

Here we have the Boot Camp Clik recap video from Manifesto Festival 2011.

Thanks to the whole shooting team (Lucas, Elliot, Cainan, Justin, Patrick, Zanana, and Che), directors (The Avengers: Char, Brian and Jon), editors (Cainan, Patrick, www.sansarme.com), DMT (Artem and Maddy).

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Who is Storm Saulter?

A writer, cinematographer, visual artist and film director of the revered new film Better Mus' Come, Storm Saulter is also the co-founder of the inspiring New Caribbean Cinema (www.newcaribbeancineam.com), a collective of young, up and coming directors making projects using a communal filmmaking concept.

Born in Negril, Jamaica, Storm traveled to L.A. to study film at the Los Angeles Film School, graduating in 2001. Since then he has developed an impressive resume including clients such as Red Bull, Red Stripe, Atlantic Records, Martha Stewart, The Hilton, the prestigious Sandals Resort International and one of our nation's most recognized brands, Roots.

His skillful imagery has also appeared in iconic magazines, Rolling Stone & The Village Voice. Some of the visuals you may be familiar with include videos for Wayne Marshall and Mavado's "My Heart", Taurus Riley's "Shaka Zulu Pickney" and the Weeknd's "Wicked Games."

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The accomplished young director received the 2011 Jamaica Gleaner Honour Award for his work in developing his native country's film industry and has recently been recognized as one of Jamaica's most influential people.

In Toronto this week to premiere his debut film Better Mus' Come at TIFF Bell Lightbox as part of this year's CaribbeanTales Youth Film Festival (click here for full details), Storm will also be showcasing exclusive artwork and inspiration from Better Mus' Come at Roots Bloor St. and at Manifesto Presents: A Talk With... Storm Saulter.

Thursday, February 2
A Talk With... Storm Saulter
Manifesto HQ
37 Bulwer Street
7-9pm
Cost: Pay What You Can
RSVP Necessary: rsvp@themanifesto.ca

Friday, February 3
Poster and Art from Better Mus' Come
Roots Flagship Store
100 Bloor St. West
5-8pm
Cost: FREE

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Manifesto, in association with Caribbean Tales Film Festival and Manifesto Jamaica will present a talk-back session and short film screening with Jamaican film director Storm Saulter, Director of the critically acclaimed film Better Mus' Come which will be making it's Canadian debut at the tiff Bell Lightbox as part of a fundraiser for Caribbean Tales Youth Film Festival (see previous http://themanifesto.ca/better-mus-come-canadian-premiere-screenings-at-tiff-bell-lightbox/).

Storm will screen two shorts from his New Caribbean Cinema collective (http://newcaribbeancinema.com) as part of the talk at Manifesto, as well as speaking to the process that went in to filming Better Mus' Come with the lead male actor Sheldon Shepherd, a spoken word artist and member of "No-Maddz" (http://nomaddzja.com) collective, a Jamaican dub poetry collective who fuse the art form with various music genres.

Thursday, February 2
Manifesto HQ
37 Bulwer Street
7-9pm
Cost: Pay What You Can
RSVP Necessary: rsvp@themanifesto.ca

Better Mus' Come Film Review (by Shaka Licorish)

Set within the politically turbulent period of gang warfare in late 1970’s Kingston, Jamaica, Storm Saulter’s debut feature film Better Mus' Come depicts the story of the infamous Green Bay Massacre - a landmark in the nation's political history - through the eyes of a fictional young community leader who must choose between fighting for his posse & making a better life for his five-year old son. Centering on the daily trauma that passes for life amongst the impoverished people of the city's garrison communities, along with their complete lack of access to basic resources and fused with limited opportunities in a time of political unrest between opposing parties, BMC eloquently sets the stage to be revered as a first-class work of art for years to come.

Drawing early comparisons to the 1972 Jimmy Cliff cult classic The Harder They Come, Saulter's film uses a 'guerilla-style' approach to deliver the era and intimate landscape of Kingston's inner-city ghettos in a truly pragmatic fashion. As writer, director, cinematographer and editor, Saulter affectionately conveys many aspects of Jamaican culture in the film, seeking to dispel the myth that the people of his native birthplace are inherently violent and that the culture is one of only violence and aggression. With BMC, he endeavours to create greater understanding amongst the audience and demonstrate that contrary to popular misconceptions, much of the country's violence is produced by the structured inequalities and dysfunctionality of postcolonial life that are all too common within Jamaican society, both then and now, by putting it into a more accurate frame of reference.

Frances-Anne Solomon, C.E.O. of Caribbean Tales Worldwide Distribution says Better Mus Come is important because it represents a contemporary take on the region's historical reality. “Young people need to know where they come from in order to step forward with confidence and pride. Better Mus Come is a fresh dynamic approach to the past that enhances our critical perspective on Canada’s children of the African Diaspora.”

As Saulter mentions, he set out to create a film that is ultimately a human story, the story of a man faced with hard choices in a difficult time. "This is a universal story, and I hope that this will resonate despite the specifics of that event." Better Mus Come vividly captures the relationship between politics and posses from an authentic Jamaican context while studying the root causes of instability factional violence, as well as many issues that have influenced the nation's most successful creative statements.

Hailed as "heralding a new era in Jamaican filmmaking", BMC is currently on a successful festival tour, most recently taking home the Audience Award at the highly regarded Bahamas International Film Festival in December as well as Best Feature Film and Fan Favourite honours at the Trinidad and Tobago International Film Festival. The acclaimed film will be making its Canadian premiere with two screenings at TIFF Bell Lightbox in Toronto on February 4 and 5 as part of the Caribbean Tales Youth Film Festival. Tickets are available at tiff.net and CaribbeanTales-events.com.

Manifesto, in association with Caribbean Tales Film Festival and Manifesto Jamaica will present a talk-back session and short film screening with Jamaican film director Storm Saulter, Director of the critically acclaimed film Better Mus' Come which will be making it's Canadian debut at the tiff Bell Lightbox as part of a fundraiser for Caribbean Tales Youth Film Festival (see previous http://themanifesto.ca/better-mus-come-canadian-premiere-screenings-at-tiff-bell-lightbox/).

Storm will screen two shorts from his New Caribbean Cinema collective (http://newcaribbeancinema.com) as part of the talk at Manifesto, as well as speaking to the process that went in to filming Better Mus' Come with the lead male actor Sheldon Shepherd, a spoken word artist and member of "No-Maddz" (http://nomaddzja.com) collective, a Jamaican dub poetry collective who fuse the art form with various music genres.

Thursday, February 2
Manifesto HQ
37 Bulwer Street
7-9pm
Cost: Pay What You Can
RSVP Necessary: rsvp@themanifesto.ca

Better Mus' Come Film Review (by Shaka Licorish)

Set within the politically turbulent period of gang warfare in late 1970’s Kingston, Jamaica, Storm Saulter’s debut feature film Better Mus' Come depicts the story of the infamous Green Bay Massacre - a landmark in the nation's political history - through the eyes of a fictional young community leader who must choose between fighting for his posse & making a better life for his five-year old son. Centering on the daily trauma that passes for life amongst the impoverished people of the city's garrison communities, along with their complete lack of access to basic resources and fused with limited opportunities in a time of political unrest between opposing parties, BMC eloquently sets the stage to be revered as a first-class work of art for years to come.

Drawing early comparisons to the 1972 Jimmy Cliff cult classic The Harder They Come, Saulter's film uses a 'guerilla-style' approach to deliver the era and intimate landscape of Kingston's inner-city ghettos in a truly pragmatic fashion. As writer, director, cinematographer and editor, Saulter affectionately conveys many aspects of Jamaican culture in the film, seeking to dispel the myth that the people of his native birthplace are inherently violent and that the culture is one of only violence and aggression. With BMC, he endeavours to create greater understanding amongst the audience and demonstrate that contrary to popular misconceptions, much of the country's violence is produced by the structured inequalities and dysfunctionality of postcolonial life that are all too common within Jamaican society, both then and now, by putting it into a more accurate frame of reference.

Frances-Anne Solomon, C.E.O. of Caribbean Tales Worldwide Distribution says Better Mus Come is important because it represents a contemporary take on the region's historical reality. “Young people need to know where they come from in order to step forward with confidence and pride. Better Mus Come is a fresh dynamic approach to the past that enhances our critical perspective on Canada’s children of the African Diaspora.”

As Saulter mentions, he set out to create a film that is ultimately a human story, the story of a man faced with hard choices in a difficult time. "This is a universal story, and I hope that this will resonate despite the specifics of that event." Better Mus Come vividly captures the relationship between politics and posses from an authentic Jamaican context while studying the root causes of instability factional violence, as well as many issues that have influenced the nation's most successful creative statements.

Hailed as "heralding a new era in Jamaican filmmaking", BMC is currently on a successful festival tour, most recently taking home the Audience Award at the highly regarded Bahamas International Film Festival in December as well as Best Feature Film and Fan Favourite honours at the Trinidad and Tobago International Film Festival. The acclaimed film will be making its Canadian premiere with two screenings at TIFF Bell Lightbox in Toronto on February 4 and 5 as part of the Caribbean Tales Youth Film Festival. Tickets are available at tiff.net and CaribbeanTales-events.com.

Soon after dropping some spiked eggnog, Theo3 releases a new single "Away" over a Big Sproxx banger.

The track is included on the Theo3 and DJ Tony Touch Elevator Up Mixtape.

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A member of the Freedom Writers collective, Mathematik has released a new video/single "Universal" with his crew Gillbreathing (members ES, Elaquent, Solar-C).

Look out for a new album from Mathematik in 2012, with a next single produced by The Fisherman, formerly known as the production team Down to Erf.

"Universal" produced by Rocky of NexusMovement.

www.gillbreathing.com

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Manifesto's Visual Arts Programmer Ashley McKenzie-Barnes is presenting a tribute to the most influential female performers in black entertainment, a celebration of Black History Month.

Go on a journey with inspirational women performers from different eras of Black History. With influences from the early 1800s to the Harlem Renaissance and the civil rights movement, as part of her exhibit Ashley McKenzie-Barnes launches her new collection of paintings commemorating these trail blazing women.

BLACK DIAMONDS ART SHOWCASE
A Commemoration of Influential Women Performers In Black Entertainment History
featuring performances by AYAH & @whoisNvS

Tuesday, February 7
N'awlins Jazz Bar & Dining
299 King Street West
Cost: FREE
7pm
nawlins.ca
Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/events/150641375048115/

Art. Hors D'Oeuvres. Live Performances.
(Artwork will be available for purchase)

www.vividbeautydesigns.com
www.ayahmusic.com

One of Toronto's stand-out groups of 2011, The Get By (Mantis, Justis, and Pangea Delphi) just dropped a new video for "Music Is For Love" off their debut full-length Let Go.

The single features Tanika Charles over yet another soulful backdrop from group member Mantis, who's production backs a majority of the album.

Directed by fellow tri-city boy Matt Pancer.

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The original brain child of Eric Firestone back in 2010, and organized by curator Carlo Mccormick, "The Boneyard Project : Return Trip" is quite the visual masterpiece. The project involves international contemporary artists painting their visions on disused military airplanes. Yes... AIRPLANES as the canvas! Artists How & Nosm, Nunca, Retna, and Faile will be exhibiting their skills with their OWN fully painted individual planes. The exhibit takes place January 28th at the Prima Art and Space Museum (Tucson, Arizona). Check the jump for additional photos of this amazing work.