A documentary illustrating the life of Jamaica’s fourth prime minister, Michael Manly was released on 29 February 2012. The release date also marks the 40th anniversary of the day Manley became prime minister.
The cradle to the grave documentary was written, directed and produced by Richard Audley Vaughan as a testament to Mr Manley’s commitment to self-reliance. Richard’s hope is that this documentary will be an introduction point for those who are unaware of who Michael Manley was.
The film highlights key events from Michael’s time with the National Workers Union and covers a large spectrum of his time as leader of the People’s National Party and Prime Minister. The film also captures Michael’s interests and life outside of the Political arena.
Director Richard Audley Vaughan hopes “That the film will serve as a good introduction to who Michael was.”
The documentary is filled with interviews from those who knew him best, his daughter Rachel, son Joseph, wives Glynne and Beverley and many more. Also contained is rare archival footage and audio as well as musical hits from Jamaica’s top artists who went along on bandwagons as Michael campaigned across Jamaica.
Richard Audley Vaughan filmed, edited, wrote and produced the film employing a key belief of Michael’s “Self Reliance” he says “I didn’t / couldn’t wait around for anyone to give me the green light so I just basically starved myself for months in order to save money for equipment and plane fare. And this being my first ever project I set out to contact people who had no clue who I was asking them if they would like to be interviewed. I was extremely surprised when mostly everyone agreed and so I set off teaching myself all I could about conducting interviews, lighting a scene, editing, and filming”.
He continues “Being of Jamaican parentage, I am always asked the usual questions about Bob Marley, Rasta and Reggae, I just want people to know there is more to Jamaica than that. I have always drawn strength from my heritage and sought ways (like taking a full-page ad out in the Jamaica Gleaner on September 19, 2007, as An Open Letter to the People of Jamaica) to show my love for Jamaica and that is why the film is dedicated to the People of Jamaica.”
You can see a preview of the documentary below:
Keep up to date with the project at http://facebook.com/manleydoc
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