Keisha Shakespeare-Blackmore, Staff Reporter

Candice Vernon - Ian Allen/Staff Photographer

When others settle for being a just a pretty face on camera, Candice Vernon is busy making strides as one of the few Jamaican black women in the American film making industry.

Vernon, 26, is a graduate of Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States of America (USA). She is a writer, film-maker and director. Her passion for film began after she emigrated to the USA at age eight. At the time, there was not a big Caribbean community in her neighbourhood, so she spent most of her time indoors. "I watched a lot of television and read many books.

"I got so engrossed in them that I began writing my own stories and poetry," said Vernon.

She discovered she had some writing talent so she decided to enter a school essay competition titled, 'Do the Right Thing', based on a Spike Lee film. She did not win the competition but her essay was printed in a book. That inspired her to write more. In high school, as she contemplated a career path, she entertained the thought of being a doctor for a while but it was not her calling. She decided to pursue her true love, making films.

At university, she did many film projects but her big break came last year with her film, Apartment 309. It is a short film, co-starring former rapper Ice-T (from popular drama series Law and Order).

"The film is about two girls I knew growing up, sisters who were being sexually abused by their stepfather. They formed a bond to come out of that situation."

The film will be shown locally on TVJ on April 13 during their women crisis telecast. It aired on HBO during Black History Month and also in a few theatres in New York.

No easy task

Vernon told Flair that being a filmmaker is not an easy task and there are many challenges. She said often many doors are closed in your face. "People literally say no before even hearing what you have to say just because of what you look like."

She added that it is hard being a woman, especially a black woman. The fact is there are not many women of colour working in the film industry behind the camera, directing and producing. "Many women want to be actresses, so industry players do not take women who want to be film makers seriously. "However, I hope to break through that barrier."

Funding challenge

She notes that another challenge is funding. "Raising funds for my film was very hard. It actually took me close to two years just to get the money to do it the way I wanted to." However, she pointed out that everything has its time. Time, she said, gave her the opportunity to meet and develop a relationship with Ice-T, which led to his co-starring in her film.

She further stated that the creative part of the industry is easy for her because she writes stories easily. But getting people to actually put their money into your film, with the assurance that they will get a good return on investment, is the difficult part.

Rewarding career

Despite all the difficulties, she says making a film is very rewarding. And her best reward yet is having Apartment 309 shown on local television in the country of her birth.

Currently, she is working on two full-length screenplays; one is an adaptation of the book, Jamaican Hot Steppers in a Lethal Conflict, written by a Jamaican author C.P. Bowen. She said she hopes to direct that movie herself and is aiming at a release in the next year or two. She also hopes to start shooting another film in Jamaica later this year. And in the long run, she will pursue a law degree. However, film remains her first love.