Basseterre, St. Kitts, November 3, 2022 (SKNIS): MSR Media has announced that it is set to produce 35 films in St. Kitts & Nevis over five years. The first film is the action movie Fast Sea, written by Sean Michael Argo and Leigh Scott, produced by Philippe Martinez and directed by Leigh Scott. Production is slated to start in January 2023 in St. Kitts.
During a meeting this week with the Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis Honourable Dr. Terrance Drew, MSR Media producer Philippe Martinez revealed that MSR Media, a SKN based company, is committed to hiring 150 people over the next four months and is finalizing the purchase of a leading hotel in Basseterre, St. Kitts, which will create 100 new jobs when the hotel reopens. MSR Media is looking to hire now 50 young persons who are college graduates to work in their film division and will be opening a new film academy in all disciplines in St. Kitts for nationals. MSR Media’s total investment in this new deal with St. Kitts will be $150 million over five years.
Christmas in the Caribbean, a romantic comedy shot entirely in St. Kitts starring British actress Elizabeth Hurley and directed by Philippe Martinez is set to premier in the United States in December.
The Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis is becoming a top film-making destination in the Caribbean thanks to MSR Media and its Chief Producer Philippe Martinez and Lee Beasley, Managing Director, who since setting eyes on the two Caribbean Islands, have been seduced by their beauty and charm and have made them their home.
Since coming to the Federation, a year and a half ago, MSR Media has produced several films including One Year Off, Assailant, A Week in Paradise, Christmas in the Caribbean and Us or Them.
In an interview with Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis Honourable Dr. Terrance Drew on Sunday, October 30, 2022, at Kittitian Hill, Mr. Martinez said:
“In the past 18 months, MSR Media has invested and produced eight (8) films in the Federation. The creation of the Ministry of the Creative Economy is a wonderful initiative by the Prime Minister and his Government that will help companies like ours to continue creating many more jobs and portray this beautiful country in our films to a worldwide audience.”
Prime Minister Dr. Drew said “We have always thought that St. Kitts and Nevis has what it takes to present itself to the world in the way that it will be presented with these movies. We are developing here what you call the orange economy where we are developing the Arts, and this definitely fits into that.”
Mr. Martinez thanked Prime Minister Dr. Drew for reopening the country and for his commitment to a diversified economy, investing in education, and for his Government’s dedication to making St. Kitts and Nevis a hub for the Hollywood film industry.
Actress Elizabeth Hurley, who was also in the interview said “What’s really important for me and for the other actors that are involved is that we really feel that we are working within communities that seem so open to have us as filmmakers, that seem to be very keen to be involved…we’ve now integrated and we have so many local people learning all the different trades, backstage, in the film and in front of the camera and that’s a wonderful thing for us to see.”
Prime Minister Dr. Drew, who was impressed with the proposals from MSR Media said “You will definitely have our support and we will develop this industry.”
