THE BOOK OF JASMINE

category: caribbean, LGBTQI, narratives, short films

THE BOOK OF JASMINE

After confessing to her spiritual Mother that she is attracted to a woman, Jasmine, a spiritual baptist is urged to mourn and seek spiritual guidance on the conflict she faces. The film follows Jasmine over the course of a day as she makes preparations to undergo the mourning ritual. Believing she must choose between her spirituality and her sexuality, she attempted to suppress her desires by rejecting the woman she loves. The internal conflict becomes to much to bear and drives her drink. Despite finding her in a drunken state, her spiritual Mother makes her continue with the ritual as planned and takes her to the church to be banned. That evening, during the ritual, Jasmine experiences a spiritual journey that brings her closer to the answers she is seeking.

directed by MELANIE GRANT
Melanie Grant is an aspiring filmmaker and activist, currently completing her final year of the Bachelor of Fine Arts (Creative Arts) Programme at the University of the West Indies. During her academic career, Melanie has also taken courses in gender and development studies which have guided her purpose as an artist. She holds the belief, cinema should be used as a tool for activism and hopes to use her films to highlight issues affecting women and sexual minorities in the Caribbean. Her short film "Pieta," which examines the long-term effects of homophobia on relationships, made its international debut in 2016 at the Caribbean Tales Film Festival in Toronto. Upon graduating, she will be pursuing her masters in gender and development studies and hopes to continue creating films inspired by her research on gender and sexuality in the Caribbean.

BARBADOS || 2017 || 14 MINS