St. John Art Created By Local Filmmakers

Last night was the Academy Awards in Los Angeles and here on St. John, film afficionados and movie buffs were found holed-up in front of big and small screens to watch the proceedings.  From St. John vacation villas to public venues like Fatty Crab in Cruz Bay, the movies were front and center, popcorn was popped, and in some locations, champagne flowed for the festivities.

It stands to reason.  St. John has a healthy filmmaking community as evidenced by the recent Virgin Islands Productions (VIP) Mini-Film Festival of shorts screened at St. John School for the Arts on February 18. The film festival was the kick-off event for the 10th annual St. John Arts Festival.  Curated by Janet Cook-Rutnik and Sigi Torinus, the VIP Mini-Film Festival featured local filmmakers Andrea Leland, LaVaughn Belle, William Stelzer, Tommy Ferrell, and the curators.  Ranging from art-house imagery to a commercial music video, to documentaries on diverse topics such as the invasive lionfish, and traditional vs. modern medicine, the festival even included a rare, home-movie archive of Peter and Dorothy Muilenburg's maiden Breath launch in Coral Bay, circa 1983.

In addition to festive Oscar parties and an annual film festival featuring local talent, St. John is also home to St. John Film Society, a free, monthly, independent-film festival whose mission is to inspire a positive appreciation for Caribbean and U.S. Virgin Islands' history, culture, and environment, often featuring off-island filmmaker question and answer forums and post-film discussions.  The next documentary screening will be "Proceed and Behold" on March 6th, 7:30pm, at St. John School for the Arts in Cruz Bay.  Director Laura Zinger and internationally-recognized letter presser Amos Paul Kennedy, Jr., the subject of the film, will be in attendance for an On Screen/In Person forum made possible by the Virgin Islands Council of the Arts, Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts' Regional Touring Program.  For more information on St. John Film Society visit http://www.stjohnfilm.com

St. John Arts Festival Feb. 18-23

In the midst of high season here on St. John, USVI, it's time to celebrate the arts with a week of special performances in a variety of arts....dancing, music, fine arts, and a mini film festival.

The festivities begin on Saturday, Feb 18 with steel pan music from Love City Pan Dragons and that evening short videos will be shown in the small scale film festival.  Sunday brings dancing and singing in the Cruz Bay park with St. John church choirs and dancing by "Mongo Niles Cultural Dancers".  Throughout the week different performers will take the stage including Koko and the Sunshine Band, Inner Visions, and student performances featuring children from a range of ages.

Be sure to visit the arts and craft tables set up at the VI Dept of Tourism area near the St. John post office.  Each day artists will be displaying their handcrafted pieces for sale which make perfect keepsakes to remember your trip to St. John. Check local postings for times and dates of all the activities during the week...and enjoy!