Top-flight entertainment featuring international stars, delicious ethnic cuisine, and a fabulous auction are all part of next month's Reel World Weekend being organised by the Bermuda International Film Festival (BIFF).

The major fund-raiser begins on October 12 with 'Colours of Tango' in the Fairmont Southampton Resort's Midocean Amphitheatre, followed by a South African Jol (party) at a private home in Paget on October 13, and finally 'Songs for the Soul' – a big gospel concert, also in the Midocean Amphitheatre, on October 14.

"This is the first major fund-raiser we have ever done, so we hope everyone will come out and support us in this new endeavour which will help others," BIFF director Aideen Ratteray-Pryse says.

Colours of Tango will be an exciting all-Argentinian evening, with the Amphitheatre transformed into an elegant Buenos Aires supper club. The event will begin with a cash bar reception at 7 p.m., during which two Bermuda School of Music faculty, guitarist Louise Southwood and violinist David France, will play. The duo received a standing ovation during this year's Bermuda Guitar Festival for their 25-minute piece about the history of the tango.

Dinner will feature Argentinian cuisine and award-winning wines, with entertainment by the Sabor Dance School. Headlining the show which follows will be the highly-acclaimed Tango y Mas Dance Company directed by founder-choreographer Angel Clemente.

'Colours of Tango' is an historical account of the journey of tango from the brothels of Buenos Aires to its ballrooms, and is as educational as it is beautiful to watch.

"BIFF has been working with Salsamania Productions and the Sabor Dance School to bring Tango y Mas to Bermuda. They have been here before, but will be doing something different this time," Mrs. Ratteray-Pryse notes.

The evening will end with a post-dinner salsa session in the hotel disco, The Cellar, where DJ Dennie O'Connor will be spinning Latin tunes, and guests can try out their own fancy footwork.

"It is going to be a wonderful evening," Mrs. Ratteray-Pryse promises. "Tickets are $200, which includes dinner, wines and the show."

South Africa Jol (Party) From the décor to the al fresco dining and entertainment under the stars in the gracious grounds of 'GateWood' in Paget, this will be an exceptional night to enjoy and remember for a very long time. Not only will the outdoor setting be transformed into 'Cape casual elegance' with lounging cushions, rush mats, carpets, and drapery flowing in the breezes, but there will be food stations dotted around all of which will serve classic South African cuisine, including Bobotie (a beef dish), Cape Kidgeree (a fish and rice dish), and Klappertert (coconut pie). Of course, award-winning South African wines will flow, and there will also be vegetarian dishes. The entertainment will be second to none, and feature Bermudian Dennis Moniz and his African Dance Troupe and Drummers as well as South African virtuoso violinist Samson Diamond.

Mr. Diamond featured in the inspiring film, 'Soweto Strings', which BIFF screened this year, and was one of the earliest students of Buskaid, a Soweto-based music school founded and operated by British viola player Rosemary Nalden, who left London to teach young musicians in the South African townships. Mr. Diamond is now a professional artist based in England who has performed with top orchestras in Britain and Europe, and he will be coming to Bermuda two days after the completion of a European tour.

"The Jol will be a spectacular evening of music, dance, food and drink, for which tickets are $450," Mrs. Ratteray-Pryse says.

Guests will park at the Peace Lutheran Church, South Road, Paget and be transported to the Jol via a complimentary shuttle service.

Songs for the Soul This afternoon gospel concert will feature acclaimed US singer Odetta. Deemed one of the most important performers of the last 50 years, the 76-year old's repertoire is mainly gospel, but also includes jazz, R&B, blues, folk and more.

Awarded the Presidential Medal of Arts in 1999, she took part in the march on Selma; sang for the masses at the 1963 March on Washington; and played for President John F. Kennedy and his cabinet on the nationally televised Civil Rights programme, 'Dinner with the President'. Artists as diverse as Bob Dylan, Joan Armatrading, Joan Baez and Tracy Chapman credit her influence.

Despite her age, her voice remains as strong as ever, and in January this year she performed at the Martin Luther King tribute in New York.

Opening for Odetta will be the Seventh-Day Adventist Church mass choir.

Tickets for the 3 p.m. event are $65 in advance, $75 at the door, and $50 for children 12 and under.

Auction Reel World Weekend will also include an auction, items for which include film memorabilia, visits to film sets, original artwork, stays in countries such as Argentina, South Africa, Italy, France, the United Kingdom and the United States, and much, much more. Bids can be placed at the weekend events, or online during the week leading up to the weekend.

Proceeds from the entire weekend will go towards sustaining and expanding BIFF's educational programmes, which seek to advance film education, promote filmmaking, and support film exhibition. These include:

¦ Supporting the Festival's BIFF Film Academy for nursery, primary, middle and senior schools, and college-age youth. The Academy facilitates the study of the history, theory, art and business of making films.

"We have a school screening programme for all children who are interested in the theatre," Mrs. Ratteray-Pryse says. " In the Primary Schools we have a books-to-film programme, where a reader reads a book and then the children watch a film adapted from the book, so they learn about the adaptive process.

"Middle and Senior school students have screenings of documentaries, which gives them the opportunity to learn about other cultures, the business side of things which they do daily and don't realise have a global impact, social and political events. It is about exposing the youth of Bermuda to other cultures, which is very easily done through film, and a great way of making people think.

"Over 1,100 students went through last year's film programme, and 200 go through the Film Festival programme."

¦ Establishing grants, bursaries and/or fellowships for the study of filmmaking.

¦ Providing support for the construction, maintenance, operation and support of facilities and equipment for film exhibition in Bermuda.

¦ Organising and convening symposia, seminars and workshops on film, filmmaking, and film education.

"In March we bring a film maker here, and we have eight weeks of summer camps. Children aged seven to 16 learn film making, how to operate a camera, a lot learn the acting side and the difference between acting on stage and in film. The older children have to write their own script and shoot their own film," the BIFF director says. "Also, with Butterfield Bank we have just started film making labs for adults. Screenwriting was an intensive course, and we are going to be doing more of this. We have often been approached by people seeking assistance in the form of grants for film making which we have not been able to do thus far, so it would be nice to be able to address that."

While BIFF is very grateful for Butterfield Bank's assistance, BIFF's expenses are such that it needs more financial assistance, which is why it is reaching out to the community with this major fund-raiser.

"Not everyone is cut out to be a lawyer, accountant or insurance underwriter," Mrs. Ratteray-Pryse concludes. "The arts are important." To purchase tickets for the above events see website www.bdatix.bm or visit Transact on Reid Street (in passageway next to Trends shoe shop), Picture Perfect at the Heron Bay Plaza, or telephone 232-2255.