DANM brings La Diablesse to the big screen in TTFF/26 world premiere

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad — Trinidadian folklore took the spotlight at the 20th anniversary of the Trinidad+Tobago Film Festival (TTFF) as filmmaker Teneille Newallo’s psychological horror film DANM made its world premiere as the festival’s opening-night gala. According to a release, the screening at the Central Bank Auditorium on Tuesday, September 22 marked a significant homecoming for Newallo, whose journey as a filmmaker has been shaped in part by the festival’s workshops, panels, discussions and annual showcase of Caribbean cinema. For Newallo, premiering her directorial debut at the festival’s landmark anniversary was the culmination of a long-held dream. “I remember sitting in an opening night screening over 15 years ago, hoping that one day, one of my films would open TTFF,” she recalled. “The festival has been an integral part of my growth as a filmmaker.” That connection also influenced her decision to make DANM a distinctly Trinidadian production, featuring an all-Trinbagonian cast and a majority Trinbagonian crew. The film draws on the folklore of La Diablesse, one of the Caribbean’s most enduring supernatural figures, but Newallo moves beyond the familiar image of the seductive “devil woman” to explore questions of motherhood, identity and history. “As a woman, I naturally identify best with the female characters in our folklore,” Newallo explained. “I have always been drawn to La Diablesse and  wanted to explore the depths of what made her tick.” Rather than reproduce the traditional stereotype, she sought to reimagine La Diablesse as a layered character whose story could speak to contemporary Caribbean experiences. “I wanted to remove the stereotype of the ‘devil woman’ from La Diablesse and see her for who she could truly be,” she said. The psychological horror film centres on a grieving Trinidadian mother and uses the supernatural to probe the complexities of loss, motherhood and identity. Its setting also draws on Trinidad’s cultural and historical landscape, bringing local folklore into a cinematic space that is both distinctly Caribbean and accessible to wider audiences. For Newallo, the film’s premiere at TTFF is also an opportunity to demonstrate what Caribbean filmmakers can achieve with local talent and resources. “I hope regional audiences leave the cinemas feeling proud of what their own people can accomplish, period and then especially with a limited budget,” she said. “I hope audiences see the potential of what our own people have to offer and the beauty of our folklore.” She also hopes the film will encourage audiences to engage with and invest in Caribbean cinema. “Our stories deserve to be told,” she said, urging audiences to support local productions by going to the cinema and spreading the word. The film’s female-driven story is matched by an all-female creative leadership team, which Newallo said was important to ensuring that its exploration of motherhood and womanhood was grounded in authentic perspectives. “Having an all-female creative leadership team gives women the opportunity to speak their own perspectives,” she said. “For this female-driven story about motherhood to feel truthful, it is best told by women who understand those perspectives. Festival Director Mariel Brown said the selection of DANM as the opening-night film was particularly fitting for an anniversary edition focused on the evolution and possibilities of Caribbean cinema. “TTFF is all about prioritising and bring visibility to the work of Trinidad and Tobago and Caribbean filmmakers. For our 20th anniversary launch event, opening with the world premiere of a new Trinidad and Tobago feature film is a testimony to the role of the festival in helping to nurture our talent, and provide a critical platform for exhibiting their work," said Brown. The banner opening-night gala brought together a large and enthusiastic crowd of filmmakers, actors, cultural practitioners, industry stakeholders and supporters of Caribbean cinema.The world premiere of DANM launched TTFF/26, which ran from September 23–27 at Movie Towne Port of Spain, with a programme celebrating 20 years of connecting Caribbean filmmakers, audiences and stories.