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Kimberly Morris, who rechristened herself as Kim Friez, wears many hats, but the good thing is that they are all interconnected within the creative space.
The actress, experimental film director, poet, and emerging line producer, savoured success at the recently concluded GATFFEST film festival, where she was named Best Performer in a Film for her role in Sonshine. Morris told The Gleaner that she was more than pleasantly surprised at receiving that particular accolade.
“I honestly didn’t expect to win. I was screaming when I heard I won,” she shared. “I feel honoured, I have been on this journey for a while and it feels good to be recognised.”
Directed by Kaleb D’Aguilar, who was named Best Director, Sonshine was also one of five films nominated for the Lennie Little-White Award for Best Local Film at GATFFEST 2025. Sonshine won the coveted award.
Sharing how she got the role, Morris explained, “Kaleb reached out to me, very excited, and expressed to me that he really wanted me to play the lead role. When I read the script, I knew it was a story that needed to be told.”
The synopsis for Sonshine states that: “A grieving mother refuses to leave her house and obsesses over the well-being of her son. However, when an unwelcomed visitor will stop at nothing to come in, Dianne tries to keep hold of her safe space.”
From Morris’ view, the high point of the film was the overall journey.
“Dianne eventually finding release and allowing her community to embrace and support her. I believe it is important for people to understand how grief affects the mind. Grieving is a challenging process, and having a supportive community is essential for anyone going through it,” Morris stated.
The 16-minute film was written, produced and directed by D’Aguilar and co-produced by Dana Wallace. An award-winning writer and director, D’Aguilar lives between Jamaica, which is his homeland, and London. He holds a master’s in directing from Goldsmiths, University of London, and a bachelor of science in anthropology from The University of the West Indies.
His poetry and prose work has been published in numerous collections including PREE and the National Library of Jamaica’s New Voices while his narrative film and video work have been showcased at the National Gallery of Jamaica, as well as regional and international film festivals.
Morris, who has been acting since high school, where she honed her craft through the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission Festival of the Arts and performed with performing group, QUILT, enjoyed working with D’Aguilar on Sonshine.
“Kaleb is a very patient and brilliant director and I will always work with him,” she told The Gleaner.
Winning the Best Performer award for her role as Dianne in the film has inspired Morris, who is no stranger to awards. As a director, her distinctive experimental film work, FreeFormed, has gained international recognition, and was featured at the 2020 Trinidad and Tobago Film Festival.
“I have a few scripts lined up to read, so I am taking things a step at a time as I also work a lot behind the camera. Let’s see what the future brings,” she said.
Marketed as the Caribbean’s premier community short film festival, GATFFEST is described as “a cinematic celebration of diversity and creativity”. This year’s iteration ran from May 31 to June 8. A record-breaking 16 Jamaican short films were showcased. Other winning films were: The Last Dance, which copped the Ian Boxill Award for The Spirit of GATFFEST and The Genie, which won Best International Film.
English (US) ·