A Hand Full of Dirt

by Russell Watson

Gala Screening:
Wednesday, March 16th | 6:00 p.m. | Frank Collymore Hall

Barbados | 2011 | Drama | 103 mins | English | PG | Web Site

A Hand Full of Dirt

Archie Redman is a middle-aged man burdened by the weight of an unfulfilled life. He lives on a beautiful island — the kind of place people dream of visiting — but this brings him no comfort. He rises reluctantly each day to face a large empty house — his wife having left him, and his only son away at university. His sole daily destination is the shabby office at his failing hotel, where he is greeted by piles of bills and bank notices.

Thousands of miles away, Archie’s son Jay faces worries of his own. He is stuck in immigration limbo, essentially penniless in a cold, unforgiving city but unable to legally work until his father pays off his substantial debt with the school. Still, he looks for a job, hoping against all hope that his father will come up with the cash in time to resolve things before he is forced to leave the country.

As the year ends and the holiday season arrives, Archie and Jay will find the walls closing in on them. Both will face increasing challenges. Pressures will rise to boiling point. The key to their salvation seems to lie with one man: family patriarch Ben Redman and his plot of hard-won plantation land. A Hand Full of Dirt tells the story of what happens when each of these men is faced with the choice of securing his own future or repeating the betrayals of the family’s past.

Movie Trailer

About the Filmmaker

Russell WatsonRussell Watson was born and raised in Barbados. A graduate of the Edna Manley School of Drama, Jamaica, he holds an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. His artwork has been exhibited internationally, and he has created several short films and multimedia works. A Hand Full of Dirt is his first feature film.