Belize’s international film festival has grown from strength to strength and the sixth edition was a tour de force, offering 33 films, of which 17 were feature length, including one made in Belize, and 15 short films of which three were Belizean, Belize’s Reporter reports.

A comedy show featuring Damon Williams and Fazian Love on Thursday night had prefaced the opening night gala on Friday, at which Belizean audiences were treated to performances by Carlos Perrote and friends performing Perrote’s own brand of jazz from Cuba – “cugazz”. singer Nelita Castillo warmed the audiences hearts with “Masquerade, and Agustin Lara’s “Besame Mucho”, and budding talent Clive Myers swooned the audience with a voice like a young Lou Rawls. The Belize Dance Company also gave a scintillating performance before the Festival Director Suzette Zayden declared the festival open.

The Festival opened with a screening of Ross Jordan’s “Road 2 Damascus.” Set in the U.S., it explores what happens when a God-fearing pastor Paul (Sid Burston) is invited to relive his past career as a music star with a multi-million concert tour, but the change throws him in conflict with his wife Lola (Diane Sellers), who is Paul’s most important reason for living besides God. Other factors such as the associate pastor Dean Mayberry (Derek Shaun), and an old flame Peaches (Toyia Moore) challenge the stability of Paul’s life, and set the stage for Paul’s descent into hell.

The Festival also went nationwide with screenings in San Pedro Ambergris Caye, where they had a masquerade party on Saturday, as well as screenings in Orange Walk at the “Las Banquitas House of Culture and in Dangriga.

It was easy to see why Robert Girault Facha’s “The Student” was a box office hit in Mexico; it was a real charmer. It tells the story of a 70-year-old retiree “Chano” (Jorge Navat) who has moved to the picturesque town of Guanajuato with his wife Andrea, whom he calls his “sirenita” (little mermaid). He enrolls in the university and makes new friends among classmates 50 years his junior, by helping them grasp the life values embedded in Cervantes’ novel “Don Quixote de la Mancha.” These friends stand him in good stead when his wife dies.

Florence Jaguey’s “Yuma”from Nicaragua was another real charmer, about a street tough young women Yuma, who dreams of being a boxer, yet falls in love with Ernesto a journalism student from the other side of the city.

From Honduras came Matthew Kodath and Hernan Pereira’s “Love and Beans”, about a desperate housewife Karen who determines to find out if infidelity is the reason her husband Dionisio arrives home late every night.

From Cuba came another charmer in Fina Torres’ “Havana Eva” about a young garment factory worker who dreams of being a fashion designer but must choose between her lazy Cuban boy friend and a dazzling capitalist who offers a chance to realize her wildest dreams. In this film, art mirrors real life, of the crossroads at which Cuba finds itself.

From Belize’s budding film industry came Aaron Lauriano’s “Caan Tek It No more’, about how a young man selling weed in the ghetto, turns his life around, survives and offers a similar hope to his past antagonists.

The importance of Belize’s environment is underscored in two documentaries, on the water connection from the river to the reef and in another: “Someday is Now” about the need for responsible , sustainable development and how pollution and over-fishing are threatening livelihoods.

For the original report go to http://www.reporter.bz/index.php?mod=article&cat=Features&article=5172