My name is Luciano Blotta. I am an Argentine independent filmmaker who for the last 8 years, has been living in Los Angeles, California. When I look back at the inception of this project, I can't help but smile. What an adventure it has been! I had no idea back then that this experience would change my life completely and forever.

It all began when I was back in Florida working on a film. I ran into my old friend from my days at the University of Miami, Mark Hart, a Jamaican who was a big fan of my work. He had been living back in Jamaica and we hadn’t seen each other in quite a long time. He insisted that I make my way to the island so that we could make a film there. My first question, of course, was, “What are we going to film?” and his immediate answer was, "The island has a lot to offer, come see for yourself." Tempted by the invitation, I armed myself with a camera and got on a plane. Off to meet an old friend and off to a land that would, in the years to come, become my second home.

A video of Miami's Q&A: Executive Producer Mark Hart explains how it all began. 

Back in those days, I loved listening to the music of Bob Marley, but if you had asked me to name another reggae artist, I probably couldn't do it at the time. I didn’t realize it, but this was the same for so many people around the world. We all know Bob Marley. We all know about reggae music and have an idea of Jamaica. But what else is there? When I got to see what was really going on in the music scene there and just how many truly gifted artists were on the island that would probably never be discovered, I thought I'd do something to help expose them.

That was the basic seed from which this film sprouted. Kind of crazy when you think about it. Flying over the Caribbean that day, I couldn't help but take out the camera and film some of the views. A few random shots that would turn to be officially the first moments of the massive 150 hours of footage that I shot for this project!