It might be argued that there should be no need to pay tribute to those individuals whose work itself is an enduring public acknowledgement of their talent, commitment and hard work. (Composers, sculptors and architects come immediately to mind.) But sometimes, to reach those not yet familiar with their work, or who take it for granted, such tribute is proper — some might even say necessary.
A little-heralded display set up in a storefront donated for the month at Tutu Park Mall is a case in point. Scattered about the room on walls, atop counters and on the screens of a television set and a computer is a wealth of information about filmmaking in the Virgin Islands, films made in the Virgin Islands, and people who have played pivotal roles in making film a viable industry here.
Many of the photos and printed materials document the contributions of Win de Lugo and Eric Matthews, who togther in 1972 proposed the idea of the government operating a Film Promotion Office and drafted legislation to bring it about. De Lugo as director and Matthews as assistant director boosted the number of film projects shot on location in the territory from 10 in 1970 to more than a hundred in 1990. These feature films, TV series episodes, commercials, music videos, documentaries and live network broadcasts generated more than $17 million in revenues for the territory — plus millions more in publicity.
Also acknowledged are the contributions of Manny Centeno, who joined the office 1990 when Matthews left and took over as director when de Lugo departed soon after. Centeno stayed with it until a couple of weeks ago, when he left to pursue opportunities in the private sector. Appropriately, there's also a look at the credits of a St. Thomas daughter and a St. Thomas son who are up-and-coming achievers in today's filmmaking world — Lilibet Foster (who produced the documentary "Speaking in Strings," a 2000 Oscar Award nominee) and Eric Zucker, owner of Flicks Productions.
Matthews will be on hand to speak for himself Monday evening from 5:30 to 7 p.m. in the second of three guest presentations that are a part of the exhibition. He'll speak following the showing of a documentary, "Classical Hollywood Style Today," which features comments by U.S. and international directors and producers on the continuing influence of American film on life and culture throughout the world.
Matthews says he will focus on how Hollywood has affected today's culture on the mainland and in the Virgin Islands. He plans to share "some personal experiences and observations, having grown up with it in Hollywood," including the impact of television — first in California, and then in the Virgin Islands in the 1970s. But he also hopes "to engage the audience in dialogue — not just give a lecture."
His credentials, in addition to his Virgin Islands work, include study at the Actors Studio and working under contract to 20th Century Fox in the 1960s. There, he had roles in "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea," the original "Lost in Space," "Peyton Place" and "America's Greatest Hero," among other films. In 1970, he co-founded an independent film company in Los Angeles and co-wrote, produced, starred in, edited and distributed "Sunstroke," a film shot on location on St. Thomas. As the credits suggest, this was not a big-budget picture, but it brought him to the Virgin Islands, and here, in short order, he decided to stay.
The first presentation, on June 5, was by Centeno, whose topic was "The Language of Film." He spoke after a documentary was played showing how a movie scene is orchestrated, from script analysis to set design to directorial decision-making to editing.
The third and last presentation, on June 19, will be by Karrl Foster, who oversaw February's V.I. International Film and Video Festival at the Reichhold Center for the Arts to completion after organizer Tony Caparelli left a month before the fest. Foster, who also inherited the Reichhold's "Cinema Sundays" program, has since founded the V.I. Film Society and arranged for several weekend showings of award-winning films on St. John at the West Resort. He'll be speaking on the professional movie critic's art. The documentary to be shown is "Writing and Thinking about Film," in which experts analyze Fritz Lang's 1936 film "Scarlet Street."
The exhibition is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Guests dropping by can peruse the exhibits and have a seat to take in the videos. This week's documentaries, running continuously, are "The Western," "Film Noir," "The Combat Film," and "Romantic Comedy." Those for June 18-24 are "Midnight Ramble," "The Studio System," "Film in the Television Age," "The Film School Generation" and "The Edge of Hollywood." And those for June 25-30 are "The Star," "The Hollywood Style" and "The Art of Cinematography."
The exhibit features old posters of films shot at least in part in the territory, photos of locals interacting with celebrities on location, even a giant blow-up of Gov. Cyril E. King kidding around with a black bear that had a role in "The Island of Dr. Moreau," shot on St. Croix in 1975. Senior film buffs may grin or cringe at scenes from the 1976 V.I. International Film Festival, also known as the 9th annual Festival of the Americas — the brainchild of the irrepressible J. Hunter Todd, who assembled similar events in Miami and elsewhere.
The potential is here for a valuable contribution to the knowledge and appreciation of the community concerning filmmaking in the Virgin Islands over the last 30 years. There are, however, signs of a casual attitude toward getting the word out. There has been little public relations outreach to the news media. Spelling errors abound in signage (in large letters srcipt, scence, carrpenters and heliicopter in one wall section alone, along with a misspelling of the name of Armando Jenik, arguably the region's best-known underwater camera artist.
A placard by the exit informs the visitor that to anyone donating $10 or more, the sponsoring entity will provide "a gift of a commenrative poster."
A visitor gets the impression that those who assembled the exhibition do not have much personal passion for film or appreciation for the contributions of Virgin Islanders to the genre. While the exhibition lends itself to group visits, it stands virtually empty much of the time. The speakers for the computer playing a clip about local film production lie on the floor behind the stand, the sound inaudible. A summer employee of the sponsoring Virgin Islands Institute for Teaching and Learning says the first Monday night guest presentation attracted "10 or 11" persons.
The exhibit, located off Center Court across from the Pearle Vision shop, will remain up through the end of June. With arrangements made in advance for a guided tour, it could be an appealing field trip for summer campers old enough to appreciate the technical, artistic and economic merits of the film industry. Senior film fans could have a wonderful time on their own or in groups, again with a guide to show them around.
Those who have, or through visiting the exhibition acquire, an appreciation for Virgin Islands filmmaking are left to wonder why some such display was not long ago mounted permanently in a public place — such as the Fort Christian Museum, which already houses de Lugo's inspired mini-mural of the indigenous inhabitants of St. Croix "discovering Columbus" as his ship sails into Salt River in 1495.
