Domestic violence drama with Jamaican, Nigerian actors premieres in Ja

By Hanan Redwan Published on December 07, 2023

The Saint Martin-filmed domestic violence drama ‘Choke Hold’, co-starring Jamaican actress Sherando Ferril, premiered Sunday afternoon at Carib 5 cinema to rapturous applause from an audience of government officials, creatives and film industry insiders.

Finding inspiration in his knowledge of an actual case of intimate partner violence, the movie’s writer, producer and director Joel Ayuk penned the script during the COVID pandemic and shot the film a year ago across the dual-nation island, with a diverse cast and crew of Caribbean, African and North American nationals.

“I am a filmmaker and storyteller, so whenever I see people in struggles and situations where they are being affected, I am touched by it as a human,” the multi-hyphenate Ayuk told Loop News, after courting rave reviews and multiple camera snaps with newly converted fans inside the Carib auditorium after the film’s final credits had rolled.

“In this instance of writing the script, it boiled within me to be able to tell that story, so that others could know that domestic violence victims are suffering, because a lot of times they suffer in silence and the abuse continues. If that situation is exposed, what happens is that the victims or perpetrators of the act can be watched by the general public,” he explained.

‘Choke Hold’ marks Ayuk’s feature-length film debut.

Born in Cameroon and a Saint Martin resident for more than 20 years, during which he founded the local channel Cani TV and is a director of the Saint Martin International Film Festival, he’s only too happy to expand his professional wings even further.

“I had done short films before; I could have made any other film, but I chose to do one at the standard of Hollywood, so I studied for 11 years to prepare myself for this feature,” he said, noting that it was shot in two intervals

“We had budget issues when we started, so shoot time was a combined 25 days… we had to fly back the directors of photography and the sound guys to be able to get some beautiful drone shots of the island,” he said.

Ayuk’s celluloid creation tells the story of an emotionally disturbed policeman, Mike (portrayed by Nigerian actor Enyinne Nwigwe), and his psychologically damaged wife, Victoria (Ferril), whose marriage is fraught with tension and physical abuse.

The film deftly explores the complications of the couple’s union, and the resulting impact on their friends and family. The supporting cast include Oremeyi Kareem, Simeon Henderson, Brely Evans, Kenneth Okolie, and Victoria Duchene.

In channelling a victimised spouse, Ferril explained that she had to dig deep to become the character.

“I am actually the opposite of Victoria. I’m not the girl that gets hit and doesn’t hit back, and so this role is outside my natural purview. I had to do a lot of reading on [certain types of] victims of domestic violence and how their headspace works and put myself in a position where I am vulnerable onscreen that the character reads real, and it doesn’t look like a tough girl trying to play soft. But I was able, I believe, to step into the soul of who Victoria is. I even spoke to my therapist about how this may even affect me,” the actress told Loop Entertainment.

Hanan Redwan

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