 | This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations .(January 2019) |
| Jamaica Motel | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Aaron J. Salgado |
| Written by | Aaron J. Salgado |
Production company | Enlight Films |
Release date |
|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Jamaica Motel is a short film produced in 2006 by Enlight Films. The film was written and directed by Aaron J. Salgado
Jamaica Motel tells a story set in the criminal underworld that exists in Miami's Little Havana. Set during one night, three rooms in this motel consist of: undercover cops executing a prostitution sting, two gang members awaiting the other half of a drug deal, and two cheating lovers. Jamaica Motel tells the story of an undercover cop who catches his cheating wife and her lover in a motel room next door to gun-packing gang members.
Director Aaron J. Salgado developed the concept for this short film while driving down Calle Ocho. Producing promotional videos for local real estate companies, Salgado put up half of the $10,000 budget. Filming commenced in November 2005, with a 2 day shoot on location in Dania Beach and Miami Beach. Politics and “true to life’ script material would force the duo off Calle Ocho by all motel owners and managers who were contacted for a shooting location. Editing was completed in the Spring of 2006. As Jamaica Motel neared its private crew and press screening, owners of the real Jamaica Motel contacted Enlight Films with a message: “Change the name, or face a lawsuit.”
Upon the premiere of Jamaica Motel, the Enlight Films team received glowing reviews from the local media. An excerpt from the Miami Herald reads, “The 10-minute short film serves as a surveillance tape of one night in three consecutive rooms of a motel.” The Miami New Times proclaimed, “a dark and raunchy realm where clandestine adulterers, prostitutes working their johns, and drug dealers on the grind can rent rooms by the hour." A feature piece in "Ocean Drive" reads, “a stylish, gripping mini-movie that brings together the occupants of three separate rooms at the motel.” The short film would go on to be selected as an official entry in the 2006 Miami Short Film Festival. The festival would bring Enlight Films the “Committee Award,” for Jamaica Motel. A Miami Short Film Festival after party hosted by Enlight Films would be featured as part of Channel 7 News’ Deco Drive show.
With all the local publicity and success, more controversy was right around the corner. In the fall of 2006, an article about Jamaica Motel and one of the cast members would be written by the ombudsman at PBS, Michael Getler. The article was titled, “A Tale of Two Actresses.” Getler went on to address a situation regarding an actress from Jamaica Motel and one of their shows. Michele Lepe, also known as “Miriam” in the short film, was hired as the host of the “Good Night Show,” which is aimed towards Pre-school children. PBS had a conflict when Lepe’s role in Jamaica Motel was discovered, considering they had fired the previous host for a similar situation. Numerous parental blog sites would be formed across the country regarding Jamaica Motel, Michele Lepe, and PBS. The New York Times eventually ran the story in the Arts section. National coverage would lead film industry agents to contact Enlight Films regarding a feature film version of the short film.
A motel, also known as a motor hotel, motor inn or motor lodge, is a hotel designed for motorists, usually having each room entered directly from the parking area for motor vehicles rather than through a central lobby. Entering dictionaries after World War II, the word motel, coined as a portmanteau of "motor hotel", originates from the Milestone Mo-Tel of San Luis Obispo, California, which was built in 1925. The term referred to a type of hotel consisting of a single building of connected rooms whose doors faced a parking lot and in some circumstances, a common area or a series of small cabins with common parking. Motels are often individually owned, though motel chains do exist.
Infernal Affairs is a 2002 Hong Kong action thriller film co-directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak. Jointly written by Mak and Felix Chong, it stars Andy Lau, Tony Leung, Anthony Wong, Eric Tsang, Sammi Cheng and Kelly Chen. The film follows an undercover Hong Kong Police Force officer who infiltrates a Triad, and another officer who is secretly a spy for the same Triad. It is the first in the Infernal Affairs series and is followed by Infernal Affairs II and Infernal Affairs III.
2 Fast 2 Furious is a 2003 action film directed by John Singleton from a screenplay by Michael Brandt and Derek Haas, from a story by Brandt, Haas, and Gary Scott Thompson. It is the sequel to The Fast and the Furious (2001), is the second installment in the Fast & Furious franchise, and stars Paul Walker as Brian O'Conner alongside Tyrese Gibson and Eva Mendes. In the film, ex-LAPD officer Brian O'Conner and his friend Roman Pearce (Gibson) go undercover for the U.S. Customs Service to apprehend a drug lord in exchange for the erasure of their criminal records.
A love hotel is a type of short-stay hotel found around the world operated primarily for the purpose of allowing guests privacy for sexual activities. The name originates from "Hotel Love" in Osaka, which was built in 1968 and had a rotating sign. Although love hotels exist all over the world, the term "love hotel" is often used to refer specifically to those located within Japan.
Lydia Susanna "Linda" Hunt is an American actress of stage and screen.
Victoria Jackson is an American actress, comedian, and singer who was a cast member of the NBC television sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live (SNL) from 1986 to 1992.
Gwendolyn L. Ifill was an American journalist, television newscaster, and author. In 1999, she became the first African-American woman to host a nationally televised U.S. public affairs program with Washington Week in Review. She was the moderator and managing editor of Washington Week and co-anchor and co-managing editor, with Judy Woodruff, of the PBS NewsHour, both of which air on PBS. Ifill was a political analyst and moderated the 2004 and 2008 vice-presidential debates. She authored the best-selling book The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama.
Joseph Dominick Pistone, is an American former FBI agent who worked undercover as Donnie Brasco, between September 1976 and July 1981, as part of an infiltration primarily into the Bonanno crime family, and to a lesser extent the Colombo crime family, two of the Five Families of the Mafia in New York City. Pistone was an FBI agent for 17 years, from 1969 until he resigned in 1986. The evidence collected by Pistone led to over 200 indictments and over 100 convictions of Mafia members—and some responsible for his infiltration were also killed by other mobsters.
Miami Vice is a 2006 neo-noir buddy cop action thriller film written, directed, and co-produced by Michael Mann and starring Colin Farrell as MDPD detective James "Sonny" Crockett, Jamie Foxx as Crockett’s partner Ricardo "Rico" Tubbs, and Gong Li as Isabella. The film is an adaptation of the 1980s television series of the same name, on which Mann was an executive producer, and follows detectives Crockett and Tubbs, who go undercover to fight drug trafficking operations. The supporting cast features Naomie Harris, Barry Shabaka Henley, John Ortiz, Luis Tosar, Ciarán Hinds, Elizabeth Rodriguez, John Hawkes, Justin Theroux, Isaach De Bankolé, Eddie Marsan, and Tom Towles.
Persia Jessica White is a Bahamas-born American actress, singer and musician. White is known for her role as Denise Williams on the short-lived television series Breaker High and as Lynn Searcy on the UPN/CW sitcom Girlfriends. White is also a member of the band XEO3, and a solo singer who released her debut album Mecca in 2009. She is also known for her role as Abby Bennett Wilson in The Vampire Diaries (2012-2017).
Joy Ride is a 2001 American horror thriller film directed by John Dahl and written by J. J. Abrams and Clay Tarver. Paul Walker stars as Lewis Thomas, a college freshman embarking on a cross-country road trip during summer break to pick up his childhood crush Venna.
Detective James "Sonny" Crockett is a fictional character in the NBC television series Miami Vice. Crockett was originally portrayed by Don Johnson in the television series from 1984 to 1990, and later by Colin Farrell in the feature film in 2006. Crockett appeared in every episode of Miami Vice except the fifth season episode "Borrasca". He has also appeared in video games and various popular culture references of the show.
Melanie Martinez is an American stage and television actress, best known as "Melanie", host of the Good Night Show, on PBS KIDS Sprout from September, 2005 to July, 2006.
Ray Lopez is an American former police officer with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and the central figure in the LAPD Rampart scandal. An officer with the Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums (CRASH) task force, Pérez was involved in numerous crimes and corruption, notably the shooting and framing of Javier Ovando, in addition to the theft and resale of at least $800,000 of cocaine from LAPD evidence lockers.
Ian Fleming International Airport (IFIA) is an international airport located in Boscobel, Saint Mary Parish, Jamaica, 10 km (6.2 mi) east of Ocho Rios, in northern Jamaica. The airport historically provided service to the United States and to other Caribbean islands. It is named for Ian Fleming, the creator of the James Bond novels, whose Goldeneye estate is located in St. Mary parish.
Celines Toribio is a Dominican actress, model, and Spanish-speaking television personality.
James O. Born is an American novelist who used a career in law enforcement to add realistic details and dialogue to his crime thrillers. His first novel, Walking Money, released in 2004, received rave reviews and was shortlisted for the Barry Award. His third novel, Escape Clause, won the gold medal in the inaugural Florida Book Award. He currently co-writes many of his novels with best-selling author James Patterson.
Oracabessa is a small town in Saint Mary Parish, Jamaica 10 miles (16 km) east of Ocho Rios. Its population was 4,108 in 2009. Lit in the afternoons by an apricot light that may have inspired its Spanish name, Oracabeza, or "Golden Head", Oracabessa's commercial district consists of a covered produce market and a few shops and bars. The main street is a narrow promenade with a number of well-maintained buildings in the early 20th century Jamaican vernacular tradition.
The True Story of Lynn Stuart is a 1958 American biographical crime drama film starring Betsy Palmer, Jack Lord, Barry Atwater and released by Columbia Pictures.
Marion Lipschutz is an American documentary producer, writer, and director. Lipschutz has directed and produced award-winning documentaries, including BEI BEI, The Education of Shelby Knox and Young Lakota.