The Forward Ever Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides support to young people in film, music, app development, fashion and literature, has received a grant from the Caribbean Development Bank, through its Cultural and Creative Industries Innovation Fund (CIIF) ).
The grant will be used to advance The Caribbean Pitch Tank, which issued a call in August 2022 for young people across the Caribbean to apply to participate in the Film Animation and Music Production virtual training.
Foundation chairman Christopher Din Chong said the project is about equipping a cadre of young people aged 13 to 29 with usable skills in the fields of film, music and animation using training and mentoring.
“The project will also go a step further – based on its name – where every participant in the field of animation and film will have the opportunity to pitch their ideas to regional and international industry experts for career opportunities, Din Chong
In addition, he said, participants will get practical experience working on ongoing projects that are in progress at the Forward Ever Foundation, and other partner organizations.
Din Chong noted that there are 21 young people who have been selected for The Caribbean Pitch Tank who are benefiting from the virtual sessions – 11 in Film, 6 in Animation and 4 in Music. Participants were from Belize, Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Anguilla and Guyana. The project consisted of two components – Film, Animation and Music Training and Development of the Foundation’s Transmedia Intellectual Property.
He said the training is not meant to be arduous, and an out-of-the-box approach will be used to keep students engaged and interested in the fields of study. At the end of each program, students will have the opportunity to receive feedback on their respective fields from regional and international industry experts.
Caribbean Pitch Tank empowers young people across the Caribbean with skills in storytelling, film, animation and music with a particular focus on promoting Creative Industries business.
It is expected, Din Chong said, that program participants will be able to position themselves in the entertainment industry and beyond by using the skills and training they have acquired in their respective fields of study.
