They’re called the “Three Kings” – but we don’t mean the Maji who went looking for Christ at his birth; we’re referring to Paul Nabor, Wilfred Peters and Florencio Mess. They are the stars of the documentary called the Three Kings of Belize. It premiered in Belize In September of 2007 – and since then has shown in 25 film festivals all over the world – from Finland to Qatar. It won a number of awards including the Audience award at the 2009 Belize International Film Festival and Best First Film at a Pan African International Festival in Canada..And now, finally, it’s come back home to be released on DVD. Because it played so well when it showed in Belize two years ago – the release is highly anticipated. Film-maker Katia Paradis told us why you should get it.
Katia Paradis, Filmmaker
“Being an artist it is an way of life. It is not because you are stage
and you perform on stage for a few years and you get fame that you become an artist or you are an artist. An artist is just a way of living your own life."
Jules Vasquez,
“Who do you want to see it now that it is out on DVD?”
Katia Paradis,
“Well I wish specially, I hope all the children of Belize could have a look at it. It is part of who they are and they may be too young to say it looks like my grandpa or grandma, it might be their great grandfather. So for them to look at the movie and see how life was before and how it has transformed right now, I think it is a good thing for them to build their own identities as Belizeans.”
Paradis is a transplanted Canadian who now lives in Benque with her husband Ivan Duran of Stonetree Records fame. She took four years to make The Three Kings of Belize. The DVD is available at quality gift shops and music stores, as well as various retail outlets, countrywide for a suggested retails price of thirty dollars. Paradis is now working on a similar documentary project on the Garifuna women who were featured on the Umalali compact disc.
