Nassau, Bahamas – TEMPO Networks, the leading media and entertainment Company in the Caribbean is proud to announce its new series The Cinemas to debut Thursday, February 5th, 2015 in America and throughout the Caribbean on TEMPO TV. The Cinemas is the brainchild of its host, Bahamian writer, director, and producer Travolta Cooper, who began the show as a result of an endorsement deal with The Bahamas’ movie theater chain. The show consists of movie reviews and interviews with a Caribbean twist. At heart, The Cinemas was designed to promote and encourage the new wave of Caribbean Cinema happening in the Region and around the world.
The Cinemas first began as small segments for the web and then it was picked up by Cable Bahamas for a half hour version. By the time the show wrapped in October 2014, it was the top rated local show on Cable 12 and one of the top rated local shows on television in the Bahamas.

In what Travolta Cooper describes as “pilot season” he says he was a bit surprised by the success of the show. “ The Cinemas began a bit by accident. I was coming off high praise with the debut of my docu-narrative The Black Moses. Much of that resulted in me being handed a platform to promote and encourage Bahamian and Caribbean cinemas. Galleria Cinemas saw it as a way to help ‘Bahamianize’ and ‘Caribbeanize’ the movie going experience. Once that concept gripped my imagination, I jumped on the opportunity immediately because I knew that the show could essentially become a way to bridge the gap between Caribbean Cinema and the Caribbean audience which is crucial to help create a vibrant and successful Caribbean box office. We hope to have the same impact with the show in the Region as we did the Bahamas. Like Nigeria has its Nollywood and India its Bollywood we hope to manifest a ‘ Cariwood’”.

TEMPO saw the show and agreed. Frederick A. Morton, Jr., Founder, Chairman & CEO of TEMPO says, “Caribbean films provide yet another outlet for the expression of who we are as Caribbean people, which is at the heart of the TEMPO mission. Morton says “As TEMPO reaches the milestone of its tenth year anniversary in 2015, the Company plans to focus on the promotion and elevation of the Caribbean film industry… the development of what we call “Cariwood” through partnerships with outstanding and passionate filmmakers like Travota Cooper who has also dedicated his life to this goal.”

The Cinemas will be an interesting mix of movie reviews, star interviews, and story. It will be a blur the lines of entertainment through of film, television, and social media. How we plan to accomplish this? You’ll just have to tune in and see in January. The Cinemas will also be introducing a contest to unite the entire Region under one film. The winners of this film contest will gain a distribution deal to have their film play in theaters throughout the Region and on TEMPO.

Travolta says, “We’re calling it the Smart Phone Film Contest, and it is open to everyone in the Region: young, old, rich, poor, filmmaker or non- filmmaker. Its multilingual and multicultural designed to blur the lines that often separate us. Also, our show is not just about showcasing talent and stars, but also about discovering and cultivating talent and stars. In doing so we hope to cultivate “Cariwood”. The point here is really to unite Region in a way it hasn’t been accomplished before and there’s no more a powerful medium to accomplish this than through cinema”.

About TEMPO Networks

TEMPO Networks is the premiere media and entertainment company producing and offering culturally relevant Caribbean content on all media platforms: on air, online, on mobile and on the ground.

Its flagship cable television network TEMPO captures and delivers the extraordinary Caribbean vibe by producing and delivering Caribbean programming dedicated to music, culture, travel, cuisine, and social awareness initiatives.

TEMPO Films exists to showcase the compelling productions of a new generation of talented Caribbean filmmakers as well as to address the enormous interest in cinematic storytelling on the part of Caribbean audiences.
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