Julien Neaves, Caribbean Head Writer
I continue my five-part recap of Trinidad and Tobago’s Film and Folklore Festival October Fest 2024 with romantic Sci Fi thriller short Skyglow (2023), created and directed by Kyron Jeffers and produced by Dream Maker Studios.
Plot: When his ex-girlfriend Ellie (Celine Sinanan) is kidnapped by mysterious forces, Judah (Joshua Gouveia) uses his special powers and the assistance of his friend Stifan (Shaquil Bitna) to find her.
Review: Longtime Robo Mango Readers (and blessings to each and every one of you) will know that I huge lover of both the science fiction genre and Caribbean films. So, when I saw a Sci Fi film set in my home country of Trinidad and Tobago, I had to watch it and review it. And I am pleased to report that Skyglow pretty dang good.
From the opening which featured a voice over by journalist, my media colleague and former schoolmate (big up Polytechnic massive!) Anselm Gibbs playing himself all the way to the end credits I thoroughly enjoyed this film. The visuals here are polished and imaginative. There are some drone shots that made Trinidad look sweet and a fantastic glowing effect in one scene that I truly enjoyed. The original music is also fantastic, including the beautiful title song by musician Monique La Chappelle.
I was also impressed by the acting here, as some of these smaller projects usually don’t feature the best of performances. Gouveia is believable and likeable in the role as Judah, and he has a warm chemistry with Sinanan’s Ellie, which is important as that relationship is the heart of the story. And Bitna, while a little flat in a couple of places, is fun as sidekick/comic relief Stifan.
I have not gone into plot because I am leaving this review spoiler free. I will say that while I have seen the core concept before, Jeffers does enough with it to make it his own. I also thought it was clever that while everything is not explained, his script gives the viewer enough to have a grasp on what is happening while still whetting their appetite for more. Now there were a couple of areas that needed some fleshing out just to understand how the abilities function, but it is not so egregious as to take away from the overall enjoyment. On the Skyglow website it is mentioned that the film is meant as a series pilot. I definitely hope that Jeffers and his team make more episodes because this an exciting, fascinating world that this reviewer would love to return to.
Editor Jules’ Score: 8 out of 10
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Julien “Editor Jules” Neaves is a TARDIS-flying, Force-using Trekkie whose bedroom stories were by the Cryptkeeper, learned to be a superhero from Marvel, but dreams of being Batman. I love promoting Caribbean film (Cariwood), creating board games and I am an aspiring author. I say things like “13 flavours of awesome sauce”. Read more.