Filmmaker Statement

I still remember the first time I heard about a “Duppy.” The entire car ride home, I stared out into the corn stalks as we made the long ride back to Yallahs from the north side of the island. Every second that passed brought a new face among the leaves. I was terrified. Growing up, Little Jamaica was one of the few places that reminded me of the island. This is a community, one of the few in the city, that had been built up by the people of the Caribbean and you could feel that everywhere you went. Unfortunately, the city never felt the same love for Little Jamaica, and returning to it decades later, you find the shell of something special, holding on in the face of all the impossible obstacles beset upon them. They are a community that continues to fight, willing to move mountains to preserve their slice of home, but there is still much to be done.