Montserrat’s St Patrick’s Festival is getting the full Hollywood treatment this year, with the Premiere screening of the major new film, Wendy, on March 15 2020. The free broadcast, which will be hosted by the Oscar-nominated director Benh Zeitlin, will take place at 6.45pm at the Cultural Centre in Little Bay. A second screening of the film will take place Monday March 16 at 6.45pm at the Basketball Court in Little Bay.
The classic story of Peter Pan is wildly re-imagined in this ragtag epic from Benh Zeitlin, director of BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD. Lost on a mysterious island where aging and time have come unglued, Wendy must fight to save her family, her freedom, and the joyous spirit of youth from the deadly peril of growing up.
This long-awaited cinematic creation was written and filmed on Montserrat, with a number of familiar faces gracing the screen in the final cut.
Martin Parlett, Head of the Government’s Programme Management Office, has been working with the team from Searchlight Pictures, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Corporation, to bring the film to this year’s celebration – alongside the Tourism Division and the Montserrat Arts Council.
Parlett said, “As soon as the release date for the film was made public last year, we reached out to Benh and the team to begin planning the Montserrat Premiere. They were totally energized by the prospect of bringing the film to this year’s St. Patrick’s Festival and I know I speak for the whole island when I say that we cannot wait to see the final creation come home. The energy and commitment of the Wendy crew to Montserrat is palpable, and this film is proof positive that Montserrat can inspire, develop and contribute to the highest standard of projects within the international creative industry. Congratulations to everyone involved.”
The Cultural Centre will be transformed for the evening into a red carpet affair, with the opportunity to be photographed alongside members of the film crew and Peter Pan actor, Yashua Mack.
Benh Zeitlin said, “The Montserrat screening is the moment the whole Wendy family has been waiting for since we began this project in 2013 – it is where the magic of this film began. The film was written on-island and inspired by the breathtaking landscapes and the courageous people that generously welcomed us into their beautiful home. The people of Montserrat were the heart and soul of our international Wendy family and we cannot wait to share it with everyone who made this production possible. Montserrat isn’t just a backdrop; it is the essence of this story’s adventure. We hope the film will make our beloved island proud. The team is beyond excited to get as many people to the screenings as possible, and to have the opportunity to raise a bush-rum and say thank you to everyone who touched our lives and made Wendy possible.”
A smaller screening of “The Making of Wendy” will be taking place at 3pm on Monday March 16, upstairs Cultural Centre.
About Wendy
Wendy is a 2020 American fantasy drama film directed by Benh Zeitlin, from a screenplay by Zeitlin and Eliza Zeitlin. The film stars Devin France, Yashua Mack, Gage Naquin, Gavin Naquin, Ahmad Cage, Krzysztof Meyn, and Romyri Ross. It is intended to be a re-imagining of J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan.
Wendy had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2020 and was released on February 28, 2020 by Searchlight Pictures.
