I dare to dream about a production studio in Jamaica, or somewhere else in the Caribbean, whose first question is simple: what would people here want to watch? Not what can we make for an overseas buyer. Not which locations will look good in somebody else’s film. What would make people in Kingston, Bridgetown, Port of Spain or Castries put the next episode on their calendar?

I write fiction with Caribbean characters because I want more room for the sorts of people I rarely get to see on screen. If I were helping put together this studio’s first slate, I’d start with a family drama about who gets to run a Jamaican business after its founder dies, a workplace comedy set somewhere other than a resort, and a feature about a relationship split between two islands. I’d want one of those projects to be funny enough that nobody feels obliged to call it important. And I’d want the first slate to be small enough that the studio can finish it and pay everyone.

Start with the work, not the building

I can picture a soundstage eventually. At the start, I’d rather see money go into a writers’ room, production management, professional sound and post-production. Rent space and equipment where it makes sense. Give apprentices paid work alongside experienced crew. Keep the same people moving from one production to the next so a good camera operator or editor can build a career without having to leave between jobs. Jamaica already has production companies and crews. Cinecom, for instance, traces its work in Kingston back to 1975. The idea is to build on what’s there, with an original slate that serves viewers in the region. Cinecom Productions

Jamaica could be the base without being the whole story

If the studio starts in Jamaica, it should do business with producers from other territories on terms they would actually want to sign. A Trinidadian team should be able to lead a Trinidadian story. A film set in Martinique shouldn’t have to be recast in English to get financed. Partners could share editing facilities or buy equipment together while keeping creative authority with the people making each show. CaribbeanTales already produces original work and promotes co-production across borders; Jamaica’s Screen Development Initiative supports eligible projects through several stages. There are people to learn from and institutions to work with. CaribbeanTales Productions · JAMPRO’s Screen Development Initiative

Make the first audience part of the business

I’d look for regional broadcasters and exhibitors willing to commit to release windows before the first shoot. A series might premiere on participating Caribbean stations with a catch-up window. A film could start in local cinemas where available, with licensed community screenings where there isn’t one nearby. Budget for captions, subtitles and marketing from the beginning. Sell diaspora and international rights too, but negotiate those deals so they don’t leave viewers in the Caribbean waiting for a service they can’t use.

That still leaves the hard part: making the numbers work. Combine private investment, broadcaster commitments and eligible development support where available. Keep the budget small enough that the studio doesn’t need every project to become a hit. Put in writing what creators are paid, who owns each production and how later sales are shared. Then measure what matters: who watched, whether they came back, and whether the money coming in can help make the next project. Expand the facilities only if the slate proves there’s enough work to keep them busy.

The moment I’d look forward to most isn’t the opening of a soundstage. It’s a viewer in Jamaica recommending a Caribbean series to a friend on another island and knowing that friend can watch it too. Then, when the season ends, both of them can ask when the next one is coming. That’s the studio I dare to dream about.

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