JEFFREY
Dominican Republic, 2016
Spanish with English subtitles | 78 min
Director/Writer: Yanillys Pérez

Friday, Aug 25
5:00 PM | The Cinematheque

Rated PG – Youth under 18 may attend

Twelve-year-old Jeffrey works on the streets of Santo Domingo washing windshields to help his family’s finances, but dreams of becoming a reggaeton singer. With the help of his older brother, Jeyson, he composes and records songs about his life, their neighbourhood, and his dreams for the future. In this intimate documentary, director Yanillys Pérez highlights the resilience and dynamism of Jeffrey as he looks for customers, tries to avoid turf wars with other windshield washers, spends time at home with his family, and climbs his special tree. Full of dynamic music and dance sequences, Jeffrey captures a real-life story of a boy trying his best to turn his dreams into reality.

“A true collaboration between subject and storyteller, Jeffrey weaves verité and socially conscious observation together with poetic moments of magical realism.” TIFF Dropbox Discovery Award jury

Jeffrey es un niño de las calles de Santo Domingo que sobrevive limpiando parabrisas, pero que sueña con convertirse en cantante de reggaeton. Con la ayuda de su hermano mayor, él compone y graba canciones sobre su vida, su barrio y sus sueños para el futuro. En Jeffrey, la directora Yanillys Pérez destaca la resistencia y dinamismo de su sujeto mientras él busca clientes, navega tensiones con los demás limpiadores, y pasa tiempo con su familia. Jeffrey es la historia de un niño que busca convertir sus sueños en realidad.

ADDITIONAL CREDITS
Producers: Thibaud Billiard, Yanillys Pérez
Cinematographers: Jan Everetz, Francis Adames, Gibran Abrales, Oliver Mota, Yanillys Pérez
Editor: Mathilde Van de Moortel
Music: “Jeffrey” Joselito de la Cruz, Jeyson de la Cruz
Cast: “Jeffrey” Joselito de la Cruz, Jeyson de la Cruz, Junior de la Cruz, Ana María de la Cruz

Yanillys Pérez (Dominican Republic, 1983) is a Dominican-Venezuelan director, writer, producer and actress. Her short film Techos rotos (2014) premiered at the Clermont-Ferrand Festival. Her first feature documentary film Jeffrey had its world premiere at TIFF in 2016, where she won the Discovery Filmmaker Dropbox Award.

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