After an encouraging turnout for its September 22 premiere, director/writer Stefan Whyte is looking at Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach as locations for the next showing of his film, Foolish Advice.

The premiere took place at Tradition Town Hall in Port St Lucie, Florida and drew over 400 patrons, Whyte reports. He said attendees who saw the 90-minute drama were largely from Jamaican and West Indian communities.

“The reaction from the crowd was excellent, we received several phone calls and text messages from supporters and they all stated that they enjoyed themselves and were satisfied,” said Whyte.

He noted that “there was a small technical hiccup which we were able to resolve quickly.”

Whyte, who lives in Florida, had multiple roles in Foolish Advice, which is inspired by the Old Testament story of Hosea and his wife Gomer, a prostitute. He also stars as Jonathan, who is in a tempestuous marriage with Suzie, played by Sandra Chin.

Foolish Advice is Whyte’s first film; it cost US$10,000 to make and was shot in Port St Lucie, Palm Bay and Miami. It features an all-Jamaican cast, which also includes Shirley Petersen, who plays Suzie’s mother; Belinda Bartley as Dawn and Tano Bogle, Jonathan’s boss.

Known in music circles as singer Stefan Peninsilyn, Whyte won the Festival Song Contest in Jamaica in 2003 and 2004 with Jamaican Tour Guide and Ole Time Jamaica.

— Howard Campbell