I ELECT: Power Every Four Years Comes to the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival

South Florida actress, playwright, and director, Carey Brianna Hart, was recently presented with the Silver Palm Award for Outstanding Direction of Melvin Huffnagle in "How I Learned What I Learned" by August Wilson and produced at GableStage. In 2020, during the pandemic with the approaching presidential election, Hart stepped off the stage and into the compelling voting rights film, I ELECT: Power Every Four Years.

I ELECT: Power Every Four Years will be showcased at the 39th annual Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival on Sunday, Nov.10, 4:45 p.m. at Paradigm Cinemas: Gateway Fort Lauderdale (1820 E Sunrise Blvd, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304). The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Hart, and writer Bill Spring.

Spring, a playwright and actor, originally wrote the piece from a series of monologues for the stage, but I ELECT: Every Four Years became a live-stream film event for Engage Miami to encourage the youth vote in 2020. The film continues to resonate with the issues that threaten our fragile democracy today.

Inspired by the Parkland High School mass shooting, and those who became activists for change in our society, I Elect: Power Every Four Years features an electrifying one-act, one-woman performance by Hart directed by Ricky J. Martinez, produced by Jose Lima, and the Director of Photography is Dennise Perez.

For the role of Bella, Hart drew inspiration from her mother's Civil Rights activism in the 1960s. Carey's mother was arrested for protesting the all-white Florida delegation at the1964 World's Fair in New York. Her case went all the way to the Supreme Court, which she ultimately won. "My mother was jailed in the 1960s for registering people to vote, making my performance as Bella a full-circle moment for me," says Carey Brianna Hart. "So many have fought, struggled, and died for the right to vote. Voting should never be taken for granted."

The story takes place in September of 2020, when the world was still in the grips of the pandemic, in the final weeks before the Presidential election. The character Bella (Hart) is alone in her Miami apartment, isolating due to Covid. Her electricity and her cell phone have been turned off. She is about to give up on life, and is so distraught that she is considering suicide. Bella decides to record a video suicide note. As she speaks into the camera, viewers are taken on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. She recalls how moved she was by the courage of the Parkland school shooting survivors, and this breaks the spell of sadness. As Bella takes a cue from those brave young people, she rallies and decides to become part of the call-to-action. Realizing she must vote in the upcoming election, Bella breaks through to a revelation of personal power. She recognizes that each of us still has the power to elect.

Admission: Student/Seniors/Veterans price is $10. General Admission is $13. Tickets are available in advance online at https://fliff.com/events/ielectpowereveryfouryears or tickets may be purchased at the door.

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