FOR American music video director Gil Green, his passion for Caribbean culture has seen him working with several Jamaican and regional acts through the years.

His most recent project is the Carib Beer-sponsored Can You Feel It by Trinidadian soca star Kerwin Du Bois and dancehall artiste Shenseea.

The video, uploaded to YouTube on October 15 (has more than 611,000 views), features a cameo by American producer/music executive DJ Khaled.

In an interview with the Jamaica Observer’s Splash, the Florida-based Green shared how he got involved in the Carib Beer project.

“I received a call from Stacey Ryan from Ross Advertising. Apparently, she got my contact from Dwayne Bravo (Trinidadian cricketer) as she was looking for a director who can deliver a video of ‘epic proportions’. Once I heard what Carib Beer wanted to do, I was immediately interested,” said Green.

He continued, “We shot for five days. Due to scheduling of the three main artistes, DJ Khaled, Shenseea, and Kerwin, we shot for three days in Miami. We were supposed to film two days in Jamaica, but it became challenging when Jamaica went on a 24-hour lockdown. So, we decided to move the Jamaica shoot to Nassau, Bahamas.”

Green said it was a delightful experience working with the Du Bois, Shenseea, and DJ Khaled.

“I love Caribbean culture. The rhythms, the dance, the vibes. My favourite parts are the turn up moments like the J’Ouvert scene, the Jab Jab scene, and the dancehall scene. All the exciting times you want to have a Carib in your hand,” he said.

Green has racked up an impressive resume directing videos such as Don’t Make Me Wait by Sting and Shaggy, Living it Up by Damian Marley, Tenement Yard by Chronixx, Options by Pitbull and Stephen Marley, Jook Gal by Elephant Man and Kip Rich, Pon Di River by Elephant Man, Paid Not Played by Buju Banton, Gal Yuh a Lead by TOK, Hold Me Now by Wayne Wonder, Compton by Guerilla Black and Beenie Man, and Someone Loves You Honey by Anthony B and Aisha.

His first music video project was Sizzla’s Thank You Mama.

“At the time, I was doing a lot of Dirty South artistes such as Three 6 Mafia and Lil Jon. I always wanted to work with a dancehall artiste and told VP Records I would do any artiste at any budget. Michelle Lin (former director of publicity at VP Records) gave me the opportunity to work with Sizzla with a tiny budget. Even though it was not a big budget, I wanted to shoot on film, which was rare for reggae artistes at the time. I remember the excitement when we brought ‘FLIM’ to Jamaica. I persuaded my film crew from NY to come to Jamaica, because I told them it would be a vacation to Jamaica! Little did they know we were all sleeping on the floor in one hotel room. With a lot of love and support from my friends and even Sizzla’s camp, which we adopted into our film crew, we created one of my favourite music videos of all time. To me, the essence and message of Thank You Mama will always resonate with people. Everyone loves their mama,” said Green, who studied at New York University film school.

Green said he was introduced to Jamaican music and culture from an early age.

“I grew up in Miami, Florida. My best friend since I was seven years old, Andre Grant is from Kingston and growing up partly in his household introduced me to Jamaican culture, food, patois, and music. I was fortunate to experience the JamaicansSound clash culture of the late ’80s that was happening in Perrine, Florida. We would often provide the sound FX equipment and beat machines for the dancehall DJs who used them in their clashes. I truly loved that authentic scene of dub plates and musical competition. That era can never be duplicated,” he said.

“From playing mas in Trinidad’s carnival, to hanging at the Fish Fry Junkanoo practices of the Valley Boys and Saxons in Nassau, to experiencing the Jab Jabs at Canboulay in Trinidad, to experiencing the latest dancehall dances in Kingston, Jamaica, I always immerse myself in some of the raw scenes because I love and appreciate authenticity that defines particular cultures,” said Green.