Teddy Frederick's documentary ‘short New Land: the Kalinago Dream’, on the last remaining indigenous people in Dominica, gained global acclaim & awards at the TIS Film Festival & at the RI Movie Awards

​Teddy Frederick, a Grenadian filmmaker, recently released the documentary film New Land: The Kalinago Dream, has won awards at the Tokyo International Short Film Festival and the Rome International Movie Awards. The 35-minute film tells the story of the Lesser Antilles' last surviving indigenous people. It received an honorable mention at the Munich New Wave Short Film Festival in Germany, as well as official selections at the 2023 ARFF Amsterdam/International Awards, Berlin Lift-Off Film Festival, and Nouveaux Regards Film Festival.
 
These selctions put it in the running for more awards. New Land: The Kalinago Dream follows the lives of two Kalinago men in Dominica: Kalinago Upliftment Minister Cozier Frederick, the first cabinet representative from his tribe, and Lorenzo Sanford, the Kalinago Territory's youngest elected chief. The video focuses on their efforts to protect their culture, identity, and land in the face of dangers such as deforestation, industrialization, and climate change.
 
Minister Frederick underlined the necessity of conveying the Kalinago tale from their viewpoint at the film's premiere in Grenada last week. He pointed out that they were never found by Christopher Columbus and that they had always existed. He went on to say that it is difficult to dismantle what has been taught for years, but individuals must relate their stories from their perspective.
 
Minister Frederick is already striving to educate his people about his tribe's actual history & how they fought slavery in the Lesser Antilles. He feels that the creative arts, social media, and this video can be used to empower the younger Kalinago generation, conserving their intangible cultural legacy in the process.