Hollywood is still a buzz with talk about the new Jamaican urban action film Out the Gate, which premiered in Los Angeles, California in late January.
Out the Gate is centered on a Jamaican dreamer who travels to the United States to pursue a music career but finds trouble when he encounters an area don who demands his dues.
The movie was shot in parts of Clarendon and Los Angeles and has a loaded Reggae and dancehall soundtrack.
Cameras flashed as the film's stars Paul Campbell, Shelli Boone, and Everton (E-Dee) Dennis hit the red carpet at the Hollywood premiere on the movie on Thursday, January 13 at Laemmle's Royal Theatre.
Numerous celebrities also came out to support the event including Leon (Five Heartbeats, Temptations), Harold Perrineau (Lost, Oz) as well as Jamaican favorites Jeffrey Gunter (Naked Gun, Marked for Death), Stacy Ann Chin, and many more.
The response to the picture was tremendous as the near capacity crowd inside the Laemmle's Royal Theatre was on the edge of their seats laughing, clapping and interacting with the movie throughout the screening as Los Angeles witnessed the historical opening of the Jamaican feature.
Immediately following the screening a question and answer session was held, moderated by reggae historian Roger Steffens, who offered the following quote about the movie – "Out The Gate is a vivid and moving reflection of the immigrant experience and the flagrant joy of musical creativity of our Jamaican cousins."
During the panel discussion "funny", "sincere" and "inspirational" were some of the adjectives used to describe the film.
"The Caribbean community in Los Angeles is small but strong and they came out in full force to support," said Keith Lewis, one of the films producers.
"There is a void of entertainment that is culturally relevant to the Caribbean and African community, so it was a joy to hear such rave reviews," he continued.
Plans are underway for the film to premiere in New York and Jamaica, and continue on to Miami, Florida; Toronto, Canada and London, England.
The film was produced by Far I Films, Inc a Jamaican/American owned and operated production company under the SAG indie agreement and shot on location in Clarendon Jamaica and Los Angeles.
The producers have announced there will be a sequel to the film.
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