Clement Virgo (centre) listens keenly to a man who knows a few things about making movies, Franklyn 'Chappy' St Juste (left), at the reception. Looking on is Chris Brownie.

It seems any time you see an internationally successful black man, he's Jamaican. At least, that's how it is with Clement Virgo.

The celebrated film maker was guest of honour at a reception and film screening hosted by the Canadian High Commission, as part of its annual Black History Month celebration at the Sir Philip Sherlock Centre. Since 2005, the high commission has hosted purveyors of the arts during February and found another excellent guest in Virgo.

This writer/director/producer's first feature film was Rude in 1995. He has also done Love Come Down (2001), Lie With Me (2005) and Poor Boy's Game (2007). For television, he directed multiple episodes of HBO's The Wire and The 'L' Word and Soul Food for Showtime. Currently, he is working on a psychological thriller set in London and a television movie about the life of athlete Ben Johnson.

So no doubt everyone wanted to meet him during the cocktail session. After refreshments, guests settled in to watch The Planet of Junior Brown, a tale of a pleasant, slightly simple and badly obese young man who has a passion for the piano. He deals with an eccentric mother, an even more eccentric piano teacher, an absentee father and other of life's potholes, primarily with the help of his good friend Buddy.

Guests out included: Brian St Juste, Judith Alberga, Natalie Thompson, Brian Heap, Michael Holgate, Munair Zacca, Michael Sean Harris, Robert MacMillan, Professor Barry Chevannes, Nancy Anderson, Ras Kassa and Tom DeSulme.

Hilary Nicholson (left) of Women's Media Watch always has much to say. Here she imparts some more words of wisdom to Director of Public Prosecutions Paula Llewellyn (centre) and broadcaster Fae Ellington.

Jamaican-born Canadian film-maker Clement Virgo (right) tells things the way he sees it to Ricardo Allicock, chief of protocol in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, at the reception and film screening, held at Sir Philip Sherlock Centre for the Performing and Creative Arts, UWI, Mona, on Monday. - photos by Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer