Saint Lucian filmmaker Elijah Anatole is set to premiere his new short film Omyra on October 27, marking another milestone in his growing body of work.
The 25-minute suspense thriller explores themes of love, betrayal, and revenge, and will serve as a precursor to the filmmaker’s next major feature, slated for production next year.
Anatole explained Omyra was born out of a moment of creative restlessness while waiting on investors to finalise details for his upcoming feature. “I just wanted to keep busy because I hate just being idle,” he told the St. Lucia Times.
Already deep into pre-production for his next film, he decided to channel his energy into a short production that could keep his skills sharp and his team active.
“I thought of many ideas and I just came up with the one idea because I love twists,” he said. “I love not making things too predictable for viewers.”
The film, he added, draws conceptual inspiration from several biblical parables and is designed to keep audiences guessing until the very end.
Omyra was completed in just a few days on a limited budget, with a small but passionate local crew, including young creatives who were eager to learn. Anatole managed to balance multiple roles, handling everything from cinematography to directing.
He revealed that support came from the Ministry of Tourism and several local businesses, including PorshLyfe, FASHIONBLOC, Rambally’s Funeral Parlour and Cayman Villas, who provided wardrobe, props, and filming locations.
He added that many of the cast and crew volunteered their time and accepted minimal compensation out of love for the craft.
The short film’s premiere at Caribbean Cinemas will be a one-time-only screening, a requirement under international film festival rules. Afterward, Omyra will begin its global festival circuit, with submissions planned for the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Africa. If not selected for feature expansion, it will eventually be released to the public on YouTube.
Anatole shared his vision for an initiative that would build a stronger local film industry by pairing emerging creatives with professionals from Hollywood.
“These are seasoned Hollywood experts who have worked on major films, major blockbusters such as films of Denzel Washington… Two of the guys actually worked on this film with Spike Lee… They are actually gonna be working on my next film with me,” he explained.
He emphasised this initiative will give local creatives hands-on experience. “At least they will be getting experience, hands-on experience, seeing how these experts do what they do, and hopefully learn from it as well,” Anatole said.
He added that this knowledge will remain in Saint Lucia, helping future productions.
Anatole also spoke about the challenges of training an inexperienced crew while working on tight schedules and low budgets. Despite these challenges, he highlighted the dedication of the local team. “The folks were very patient… they were always excited, always ready to be on set every day, no matter what the challenges were.”
He hopes to further connect local talent with international experience, aiming for productions that can compete on a global level. “The film industry is not limited to the US… The same level of education or even knowledge that these folks have, anybody could have that; the equipment… anybody could have that… Look at me, I was able to do a feature and more.”
He stressed that his initiative is not about monopolising the industry but fostering collaboration. “Creatives need to be able to stop fighting each other and come together, and to just not look at each other as competition, but to just see how best they could put their own creativity to work and to be able to start producing things.”
He also revealed that his next project, a six-episode limited series inspired by local folklore, is already in development, with hopes of pitching it to Netflix. “We have what it takes to produce top quality films that can compete with Hollywood,” he said confidently.
The film will premiere at Caribbean Cinemas on October 27 at 6:30 p.m. Tickets for Omyra are priced at $20, with proceeds going towards film festival entry fees, which Anatole noted are “expensive”.
Anatole hopes Omyra will inspire a new generation of Saint Lucian filmmakers saying, “It’s just your mindset that limits you, not your location.”
