Imagine an animated Gecko leaving the Caribbean shores to bring colour and Caribbean humour to London.  Well you just might be able to see this on big screen soon, as Melwood Pictures in the UK collaborate with Full Circle Animation studio here in Trinidad to produce a pioneering animated film about such a character.  Managing Director of Melwood pictures Ramsay McBean will be discussing these plans at the annual Animae Caribe Festival. Headed by Max Howard,a former Senior VP of Disney, President of Warner Bros Feature Animation and Executive Producer at Dream Works, Melwood pictures plan to conduct pre-production for the film right here in Trinidad and Tobago.   This will consist of storyboards, background designs, animatics and possibly some animation production.

A huge focus is also the use of calypso music on the soundtrack, as the Gecko character is loosely based on Lord Kitcheners visit to London in the forties. This collaboration will be a first for the Caribbean as the objective of the project is also the exchange of knowledge through workshops with the director and character designer for the project.  The British Council here in Trinidad is partnering with Animae Caribe Festival on this project by facilitating discussions, connections and collaborative opportunities to make this a reality.  They have recently met with the studio in the UK for initial discussions. Allyson Mc Kell-Pantin, Project Delivery Manager of the British Council expressed her excitement in the possibilities of the project "The British Council is thoroughly excited to partner with Animae Caribe on this project and we are very keen on the Gecko project in particular. The outcomes here are countless, commercial opportunities regarding the animation in both the UK and the Caribbean, international exposure for the Caribbean, the training opportunities for young animation talent and related fields in this region with the UK expertise and not to mention the benefits on the other side in the UK with establishing this link and hopefully breaking ground for other animation opportunities to follow. British Council is privileged to be facilitating their visit and associated activities."