| J-Bord | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Jaine Alobardi |
| Written by | Marxsen Dipradi |
| Produced by | Ellen Dipradi |
| Distributed by |  Hycam Releasing  20th Century Fox Village Roadshow Pictures |
Release dates | September 1982 (New York Film Festival) (Rogatia) March 18, 1983 May 25, 1983 |
Running time | 109 min. |
| Countries | Rogatia Dominica Italy |
| Languages | English French Creole |
| Budget | EC$3.1 million |
J-Bord is a 1982 romance drama from Rogatia's Hycam Entertainment, directed by Italian-born Jaine Alobardi, and produced and written by her step-siblings. The film is centred on an ambitious adventurer and real-estate developer, who eventually gets wooed by a children's illustrator.
This was the second Hycam production for 20th Century Fox, a major Hollywood studio. Their other co-projects were Tinker Top (1980), Covers (1986) and Three Cheers for Sweet Glory! (1988).
Production edit
As of 2009, J-Bord remains one of the few major productions to be filmed on location in the Commonwealth of Dominica, along with 1988's The Seventh Sign and the Pirates of the Caribbean sequels.
The film's shooting stage began in March 1979, at a pace of almost half a scene per week. Like many of Hycam's ventures, J-Bord faced its share of stops and starts: political turmoil in Dominica at the time (especially the May 1979 civil strike), as well as Hurricanes David and Allen, left the project hanging for weeks at a time.
Owing to the lack of major film services on that island, much of the post-production work was handled by the then-fledgling TJE Studios in Weymouth, Rogatia, and Great Britain's Twickenham Studios. TJE's contribution to the film resulted in the first major appearance of Jill Barklem's Brambly Hedge characters in mass media—only two years after their first books were published, and about 15 years before the British stop-motion specials.
Financing was provided by the Rogatian Government, Dominica's major banks and Ministry of Culture, and France's Credit Lyonnais, effectively demonstrating an early example of international co-production.
Release edit
The film premiered in late 1982 to positive acclaim at the New York Film Festival, before receiving general release throughout the West Indies a year later.
In the U.S., J-Bord officially opened on the same weekend as another Fox film, Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. After 1970's Young Girl, this was the highest-grossing film for the Hycam brand at the time, making upwards of US$4.3 million on a 195-theatre maximum.
On September 23, 1986, CBS/Fox Video released J-Bord on VHS and Laserdisc. While this sole edition went out-of-print in the 1990s, it maintained a cult following on HBO and sister station Cinemax. In commemoration of its 25th anniverary, it became part of the Criterion Collection's DVD lineup in June 2007.
Soundtrack edit
A 15-track album for the film was released on LP and cassette by Columbia/CBS Records in August 1983. The soundtrack features Bram Tchaikovsky's "Girl of My Dreams", heard in the later part of the end credits, and contributions from Dominican folk singers Mabel Cissy Caudeiron and Ophelia Marie.