We are moving stories

“My Mum, Robin is my hero. She raised four of us on her own and I wrote this story in honour of her and all single parents doing their best for their kids.”

“I wanted to explore the fact that life is short and death is inevitable and all we have are the moments of joy. I think we have a responsibility, no matter how bad things get, to make the most of the moments we do have. When everything is gone, when everything is shot we still have light moments and enjoy those seconds. If you were on your deathbed you would buy back 20 minutes with your loved ones for 1 million dollars. What do you sell an hour for now? But if you had none left – that hour, you would pay anything for it.”

“Themes of mis-communication and bullying are explored in the film, these are universal I feel and something that many of us can relate to. There are also themes of cultural oppression, which is explored through the interaction of the two main characters John and Wiremu. This is something I wanted to explore because of the history of race relations in New Zealand between Pakeha (descendants of British settlers) and Maori, and because of my Maori mother and Pakeha father. I’ve always felt a strong affinity to my Maori roots, and I wanted to explore this in the film.”

“Everyone wants to feel like they belong to someone or something special. Family is everything in Pacific Island societies. Much like culture, it plays a big part in our way of life as Pacific people. As a director, I want to make films that emphasize these kind of themes because personal themes like love, forgiveness, hate, they’re all universal themes and whether they play out in big political arenas or at home, they all come down to a personal story.”

“Audiences should watch this film because it has heart. Audiences have been moved by it and found it touched them in a personal way. This story began as one that was personal to me and as it has developed it has become clear to me how universal the themes of this film are. Audience members have told me how they saw in this film their mother, their brother, and their family.”

“I encourage everyone to watch it, the film reflects the moment of doubt and uncertainty we all have in our lives but depicted through a personal story which takes place during a relatable event most woman in their late 20s and early 30s would have come across. The message is to say it’s alright it’s okay to have days like these and be vulnerable sometimes.”

“The film’s title is a play on the dessert that the lead character Maebh orders at the end of the film – it’s referring to an actual apple crumble but it’s very tongue in cheek.”

“Milk isn’t like most short films, its ultimately a happy tale, but you may cry! In just 5 short minutes, you are transported to a simpler time in rural New Zealand and you will feel the essence of this town and the people within it. It hits you in the heart and everyone relates to either the act of giving, or receiving, or just sacrifice or compassion, it affects everyone differently. But I’ve even shown it large school groups and theres nothing quite like 200 kids all quietly sobbing and wiping their eyes after watching your film!”

“These days it seems you don’t have to look too far to see something bad happening in the world, and so I think there is a place for a film like ‘Madam Black’. A programmer of a festival in Italy, where we screened, watches the film whenever he’s feeling blue, and I get that. On the surface it’s a quirky comedy, but if you look past the laughter, it’s a story about humanity conveyed with humour, where the hero ultimately puts self interest aside. While it might not make you feel differently about the world, the hope is that it will make you feel differently about yourself.”

“Spinosaurus has captured a natural and unforced charm I’ve rarely seen achieved with child actors. It was a risky project to make and ambitious in its goal. Yet it is one of the simplest of ideas. There is a strong emotional pull which is hard to achieve in 14 mins, it is a short film which makes you smile yet can also make you cry.”

“Watch Nurse Me if you: want to be hypnotised by movement, love dance on screen, or want to experience visceral moments and allow the film to take you to unexpected places. Watch Nurse Me if you are a film lover.

We weave a tight connection between concept, narrative, and visual metaphor.”

“This isn’t an entertaining film, but a film that talks to you. Regardless where you are from, what you do, who you are, as long as you have a taste of loneliness, lost, distance to others, losing oneself... This is the film for you. It may make no sense as a story, but every word in this film connects to you, it’s very personal.”

“The film has a compelling external quest at its heart; but it’s also the story of an arrogant young man who has to learn some humility before he can succeed.”

“I had been making music videos for numerous bands and artists in New Zealand for a few years. One band that I was particularly attracted to was Head Like a Hole. They possessed a degree of danger and derangement – this appealed, not only for music video purposes, but also for my personal reputation; I kinda liked the idea of working with the premier, drug addicted outlaws of New Zealand rock.

My relationship with Head Like a Hole had already spanned 16 odd years, when I suggested the idea of a documentary. I was looking for a challenging personal project; something that was more substantial in scope than what I had been doing previously.”

“The film was a happy accident - I was filming a doco in Melbourne and followed the subject to a craft show/organic fair just outside of the city. I saw some women selling bags of high end organic chicken feed. I thought, who the hell is buying that? So I went over for a chat and asked about what they do. When they nonchalantly mentioned that “top breeders on the national show circuit” buy loads of feed, my eyes lit up. Avian poultry pageantry...?”

“This film gives a positive and uplifting view of the world of indigenous art and what we can learn from tradition about taking care of our planet. It is at the meeting point of science and art in the most beautiful place in the world - Antarctica!”

“Well, whales have always been important to me, I have had this recurring dream about whales from my earliest childhood. Traditionally, whales are incredibly important to New Zealand Maori, were guardians, provided food, and in Polynesian culture the migration of whales was used for navigation. Humpbacks take their songs with them, singing “stories”.”

“I think this movie has it all. You’ll be shocked, you’ll laugh, you’ll have fun, you’ll be made to rethink some of your assumptions and you’ll be heartened by the romance as well.

If you’re Queer, it’ll be a fun celebration of experiences you’re probably familiar with. If you’re straight you’ll learn a lot and have fun while watching too. This is a fun movie but it’s not frivolous either.”

“Following the recent death of my best friend’s father, I had learnt that she attended a community group in the UK, known as a ‘death cafe’. Like many, I had never heard of such a thing. It did, however, pique my interest in researching. After a few weeks, I realised that these cafes were present all around the world, so I ventured out to find one in New Zealand.”

“It is vital for Aotearoa’s stories to be told. As Pacific storytellers, those are stories that are hidden by the dominant narrative.

Both Fa’amoana and I wanted to bring this story to light. Yes, it’s dark and the things that happened to him and his young friends in care are tough to tell but this is also a story of resilience and the unbreakable bond these kids had. Darkness is at the heart of the story but I believe you always have to look for the light, and that’s what this documentary is all about.”

“I am interested in capturing people and their lives in an authentic way. By sharing people’s personal stories, we get the chance to understand and appreciate each other, and ourselves, better. Our stories may not always be the same, but we can relate to people’s emotions, and they are universal as we are all interconnected.”