It’s a double celebration and new movie for Antigua & Barbuda’s filmmaking duo, Howard and Mitzi Allen (HAMA) as they return to the big screen in 2023 with their latest feature Deep Blue. The new movie hits local screens as the couple celebrates their 30th year of marriage and storytelling through their company HaMafilms, Antigua.
HAMA is the team behind Antigua & Barbuda’s first feature film, The Sweetest Mango (2001), which was named a Caribbean Classic in 2019 by Trinidad & Tobago International Film Festival (TTIFF) Founder Dr. Bruce Paddington. They have since made four other films, No Seed (2002), Diablesse (2005), The Skin (2011) and soon to be released Deep Blue (2022)
Deep Blue is an environmental love story starring Jamaican/Canadian Peter Williams and several new faces from Antigua & Barbuda. Williams (who also starred in The Skin), plays David Hamilton, the architect behind a proposed luxury resort who falls in love with an environmentalist hell bent on stopping the project. With climate change and the importance of building blue economies a global focus, the film is timely, and the couple believe it will connect with audiences just as they did with The Sweetest Mango.
The roster of international talent includes Canadian actress, Kim Huffman, Canadian-Guyanese actor Ryan Singh, British Actor, Tom Pritchard of Netflix’ The Crown, Antiguan-British Actress, Julie Hewlett, and Canadian-Trinidadian actress Rhoma Spencer. The soundtrack features music by Causion, Antigua and Barbuda’s Reggae Ambassador, Antiguan musician Vincent McCoy along with singer/song-writer Promise. The movie’s theme song “Beautiful” is written and performed by Grammy winner Maurice Gregory of Third World.
The HAMA team believe Deep Blue is their most important subject undertaken to date. “This story is near and dear to our hearts, as it resonates with people all over world and right here at home. It’s about the Marine Environment,” says Director Howard Allen. “The film’s message aligns beautifully with the fight to ensure our environment is safe and healthy for future generations. It also asks us to consider what will we do for love?”
Deep Blue, which completed principal photography prior to the pandemic, captures the breath-taking beauty of the islands above and below the surface.
