A 17-year-old girl seeking community and excitement stumbles upon a free-spirited dance crew who invite her to their next audition. Navigating this new world, she finds her fate in the hands of those in power.
Sparkle (Onessa Nestor) is a naïve 17-year-old girl seeking community and excitement when she stumbles upon a free-spirited dance crew who invite her to their next audition. Welcomed into the sisterhood despite her lack of street smarts, she soon meets Skinny (Kern Mollineau), a rapper who’s immediately taken with Sparkle’s wide-eyed innocence. Navigating this thrilling yet sinister new world that revolves around nightlife and cash, Sparkle finds her fate in the hands of those with power in this seemingly postcard-perfect setting, with misogyny brewing beneath the surface.
This visually stunning debut feature from director Maya Cozier flows with unapologetic female sexuality and is ultimately an unrelenting examination of toxic masculinity. Nestor portrays Sparkle with delicacy and depth from the first frame to the last. Gorgeously photographed with bright aesthetics and raw energy in the filmmaker’s home of Trinidad and Tobago, this film is achingly authentic and reverent in its exploration of female friendship, sexism, and the ways in which music and dance shape communities in the Caribbean.
Maya Cozier is a filmmaker based in NY. She holds an MFA from Columbia University, where she attended as a Lenfest Fellow. Her work often explores themes of isolation, connection and belonging within marginalized communities through an intimate lens. Her feature film, She Paradise, premiered at the 2020 AFI Fest in the New Auteurs Competition and was an official selection at the Tribeca Film Festival. Her work on the Kambule Riots exhibited at the Sharjah Biennial: Thinking Historically in the Present. Her ongoing collaboration with musicians includes working with Etienne Charles on a multimedia performance at Lincoln Center, San Juan Hill: A New York Story, featuring the New York Philharmonic. Her award-winning short film Short Drop continues to screen at festivals and events worldwide. A recipient of the NYC Women’s fund, Maya’s work has been featured by the Hollywood Reporter, NYTimes, LATimes, Short of the Week, Vice and The Playlist. She Paradise was distributed by Samuel Goldwyn Films and is available for streaming on Amazon Prime.
Tribeca Film Festival
AFI fest
