Calypso Rose to take Cannes stage
By Kalifa Clyne (T&T Guardian)The life and times of the dynamic Calypso Rose—Mc Artha Lewis, will be showcased at one of the world’s major film events, the Cannes Film Festival, in France. Rose is also set to deliver a live performance at the prestigious event following the screening of the film, Calypso Rose: Lioness in the Jungle, on May 19. Rose’s fans will have the opportunity to view the film at 8 pm today at the National Academy for the Performing Arts (NAPA), Port-of-Spain. The 83-minute feature-length film was made by two French producers, Maturity Productions and Dynamo Productions, and the T&T Film Company.
Maturity Films had previously produced an album of Rose’s work.
At Cannes, the film will be screened at the Pavillion Les Cinemas Du Monde at the 64th edition of the festival. The Cannes Festival typically attracts massive international media coverage, a big international celebrity crowd, as well as film enthusiasts worldwide. In a brief interview, Rose, 71, said she was very happy with the film and pleased with the attention it had garnered. She said she felt proud that it provided documentation of her achievements and on the fact that today she was still achieving. Jean-Michel Gibert, one of the film’s producers, was full of praise for the iconic calypsonian. Gibert said that after doing a film on calypso music seven years ago, filmmakers saw Rose as a character that needed more development.
Four years later they began work on Calypso Rose: Lioness in the Jungle with French Cameroon director Pascale Obolo. The film follows Rose through different parts of the world as she continues her fight for women’s causes and interacted with fans. Gibert said the documentary was not only about Rose’s life in calypso but also about her struggles. “It is a film about a remarkable woman who went through a lot of struggles and was still able to achieve an amazing career,” said Gibert. Gibert felt the media did not give enough recognition to Rose and hoped that that would soon change. He described Rose as one of the most travelled calypsonians in the world and said her message to women was one of empowerment.
