ABUJA, Nigeria, CMC – ST. Kitts and Nevis has signed an agreement with an internationally recognised filmmaker that the Caribbean island says marks a major step forward in advancing the twin island Federation’s creative industries and strengthening cultural and economic ties between Africa and the Caribbean.
The agreement with the Nollywood filmmaker, director, and founder of Natives Filmworks, Steve Gukas, was announced on the opening day of the Afri-Caribbean Investment Summit here.
Creative Industries Minister, Samal Duggins, said this strategic partnership stems from recent engagements and visits to Nigeria, where initial discussions were held and relationships formed, ultimately leading to this groundbreaking collaboration.
The agreement will facilitate the production of a major film project in St. Kitts and Nevis, scheduled for June 2026, while also establishing a broader framework for training, mentorship, and collaboration across the global African creative community.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Duggins used the opportunity to emphasise the transformative potential of the initiative for St. Kitts and Nevis and the wider Caribbean region, as he also highlighted the regional impact and vision behind the collaboration:
“And I thought this would be a great opportunity, not just for St. Kitts and Nevis, but for the region, if we can develop twelve films across the region that look at global Africa from our perspective.”
Duggins spoke of the importance of telling authentic stories that reflect the diversity and shared heritage of Afro-descendant communities:
“And our perspective is not just insular to each island, but our perspective as a Caribbean region or the Western Hemisphere as a whole, looking at all the different cultures that exist because there are nuances… and those nuances we want to inject into these films and make sure that we see global Africa for what it truly is today.”
The collaboration will also include a structured programme for training and developing filmmakers, providing opportunities for emerging creatives from St. Kitts and Nevis and across the Caribbean to gain hands-on experience in film production, storytelling, and global distribution platforms.
Importantly, the presence of a diverse delegation from Saint Kitts and Nevis, comprising creatives, cultural practitioners, and industry stakeholders, further underscores the Government’s commitment to ensuring that opportunities generated through such partnerships translate into tangible benefits for the wider creative sector, the Government noted.
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