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(Port of Spain) – The Forward Ever Foundation, a non-profit organisation which provides support to young persons in film, music, app development, fashion and literary works has received a grant from the Caribbean Development Bank, through its Cultural and Creative Industries Innovation Fund (CIIF).

The grant will be used to advance “The Caribbean Pitch Tank” which issued a call in August 2022 to youth across the Caribbean to apply to participate in virtual Film Animation and Music Production training.

Christopher Din Chong, Chairman, Forward Ever Foundation said the project is about equipping a cadre of young persons between the ages of 13 to 29 with employable skills in the areas of film, music and animation using training and mentoring, “The project will also go a step further – based on its name – where each participant in the animation and film areas will get the opportunity to pitch their ideas to regional and international industry experts for career opportunities.”

In addition, he said, participants will get practical experience by working on ongoing projects which are in progress at Forward Ever Foundation, and other partnering organisations.

Mr. Din Chong said there are 21 young persons that were selected for The Caribbean Pitch Tank who are benefitting from the virtual sessions – 11 in Film, 6 in Animation and 4 in Music. Participants were from Belize, Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, Antigua and Barbuda, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Anguilla and Guyana.  The project comprised two components – Film, Animation and Music Stream Training and Development of the Foundation’s Transmedia Intellectual Property.

Some of the topics in the Music Cohort Curriculum include Introduction to Composing Music for Film; What is DAW (Digital Audio Workstations) and What Music does for Film and Animation, among other pertinent topics.

He said the training is not meant to be onerous, and an out of the box approach will be utilised to keep students engaged and interested in the areas of study. At the end of each programme, students will get the opportunity to get feedback on their respective pitches from regional and international industry experts.

The Caribbean Pitch Tank empowers youth across the Caribbean with skills in storytelling, film, animation and music with a particular focus on the promotion of the business of the Creative Industries.

It is expected, Mr. Din Chong said, that participants of the programme will be able to position themselves in the entertainment industry and beyond using the skills and training they received in their respective areas of study.