THE WARRIOR WAY: THE TEMUERA MORRISON INTERVIEW

It has been 20 years since Lee Tamahori’s adaptation of Alan Duff’s novel Once Were Warriors left international audiences stunned. At the centre of the brutal, heartbreaking drama was Jake ‘The Muss’ Heke, brought to frightening, vivid life by one of New Zealand’s greatest acting exports, the charming Temuera Morrison. Ahead of an anniversary screening of the film at the recent Gold Coast Film Festival, a lean and chatty ‘Tem’ sat with SCREEN-SPACE to reflect upon his early career days, the Warrior shoot and working in the madness that is Hollywood…

Acting was always you’re passion, but I gather you entered the scene as a techie on The Piano…

I was working on the crew of Jane Campion’s film and had met Sam Neill and Holly Hunter and the great Harvey Keitel. I mentioned to someone that I wanted to give this acting thing ago, that was my burning desire; watching Sam, Holly and Harvey, all of whom had their own particular styles and techniques, was just incredible. I got a small role in The Piano, but actually left the film because I got a role on Shortland Street, which was, of course, very different from The Piano gig (laughs). But all of a sudden, I was a working actor. 

Can you recall those early days, when Riwia Brown’s script was doing the rounds and buzz was building for Once Were Warriors?

A lot of the industry was off working on Rapa Nui, which I was overlooked for, and word had started to get around about the Warriors script. After the first round of auditions, I got a little role in the film as a policeman, then I got the Uncle Bully role. About a month out from shooting, my agent got a call and he told me they wanted me to read for Jake. When I got that news, a light went off in my head. The first thing I thought was, ‘Here’s my chance’. I’d grown up in Rotorua, where the book is set, and I’d read it. So between my scenes as a doctor on Shortland Street, I got the make-up team to put some tattoos on my arms, found some rough shirts and went into the audition. And I just fired into one of the scenes, just thought to myself, ‘Right, I’m going to give this a nudge.’ (pictured, right; Morrison as Jake)

How did you begin the process of bringing Jake to life?

My agent was a lovely guy, Robert Bruce, (pictured, left; Morrison and Bruce preparing for the role of Jake) who has passed away now. He was a bit of a scrapper, a fighter; he was wrestler, as a younger man. So he relished the news that they wanted to cast me. When the director rang Robert, he said, ‘We are going to go with Tem, but you have to get him ready.’ So he would get me revved up, got me into physical shape. We’d start training at 6am, do lots of boxing and fighting.
And a lot of the kids hadn’t acted before, so I was able to work with them and work through getting the dynamics of the family right. Especially Grace (actress Mamaengaroa Kerr-Bell), who I had to get revved up for all her scenes. They weren’t always nice times for me, for us, because it was a bit raw. You have to put those moments aside, convince yourself you are doing it for the character, for the film.
Also, we based a lot of the film on A Streetcar Named Desire, so I watched that a lot. The domestic situation was similar, Brando’s wild animal performance; Lee told me to watch that a lot. Years later, the reviewer in The Chicago Times, called me ‘The Maori Stanley Kowalski’. And I was like, ‘Yes, this guy’s got it!’ (Ed. - Reviewer Roger Ebert called Morrison's performance "as elemental, charismatic and brutal as a young Marlon Brando")

Were you prepared for what Rena Owen brought to the role of Beth?

No one could have played Beth other than Rena. All the other actors, me included, had to lift our game to match this woman. She was just so powerful, her well was so deep, her energy source and emotion that she could draw upon. She could be a little bit, you know…she had an edge about her, that kept you on edge as well. 

You were carrying a major film in your first starring role. The physical nature of the role aside, was it a tough shoot?

Rena had concerns about me, just as the producers had their concerns about me, which I could feel. They were waiting for me to drop the ball.  It was a painful lesson, learning to believe in myself. I wasn’t getting the support I wanted going into this film. They were nervous and I could feel that nervousness. They weren’t giving me the things I needed as an actor so I just went for it myself, doing the work as best as I knew how. I heard that stuff was happening behind the scenes, stuff like ‘What was I doing in that role?’ Rena had a few words to say, I know. So I just took it all on board and used it in the role. When the cameras started rolling, I just said to myself, ‘All right, let’s go.’

Were you in any way prepared for the impact the film would have globally?

We didn’t realise what we had made. We never anticipated anything.  We had a cast and crew screening early on and it was a very solemn, very quiet experience. We all went back to one of the cafes that was nearby and everyone was silent. I knew then that if this film was affecting us like this, all the people who were there making it, then I knew it was going to affect a whole lot of people. We played a packed theatre at Sundance and I knew it was packed because just after the film started, a bloke came in and sat in the aisle right next to me, stayed there for the whole film. When the lights came up it was Robert Redford.   

The Hollywood scene beckoned and you got some pretty high-profile gigs…

I took Barb Wire because it was Casablanca! I don’t know how I didn’t win an Oscar. Pamela Anderson (pictured, right; with her co-star) was Ingrid Bergman and I was Humphrey Bogart. That’s how I was playing it (laughs). Then Speed 2 and Six Days Seven Nights. I had an agent who’d bring me out to Hollywood, which I knew straight away was too crazy for me. I couldn’t relate to it. But I’d love going for there for two weeks, then I’d love going home again.

Perhaps craziest of all was your part in the madness that was John Frankenheimer’s The Island of Dr Moreau…

We get there for one of Brando’s first scenes, just as David Thewlis’ character arrives on the island. Brando starts going, ‘Look at all my children, look at what the French nuclear bombs have created’. He starts blaming our look on French testing, which has nothing to do with the script. He just started making up his own lines. The director starts mumbling, ‘Uh, cut, cut please’ and he starts talking to Marlon, who politely says, ‘Ok, John, let me try another take.’ Then he’d make up something else out of the blue!
And poor Richard Stanley, he got sacked from his own film. After two weeks, he had no dailies to show New Line; he should have just shot the rain and sent that to them, told them ‘We can’t shoot much else.’ Poor guy had been working on this script for seven, eight years, had got Brando involved, but that’s the nature of the business I guess.
I actually got in a lot of trouble because my agent had double-booked me and the shoot went on and on. We were meant to be done in three months and it went on for months, all the time I was putting on this make-up then sitting around on-set and doing nothing. So I just left. I bought a ticket and just flew home. And I got home and there was a lawyer in my driveway with a lawsuit! I had to fly back in a hurry. Those were the days. (pictured, left; Morrison in full make-up on the film's set). 

Did you actively seek out the role of Jango Fett in The Phantom Menace?

Well, I didn’t know too much about all that Star Wars stuff. I just saw it as a great opportunity to work in Sydney, because it was all shot at Fox Studios. I spoke to George Lucas’ casting agent, just a little chat with the video camera on me, very cordial. I’d never had an audition like it. Then I got the phone call, ‘We’d love you to play Jango Fett.’ I remember jumping out of my chair and yelling, then I said ‘Who’s Jango Fett?’ (laughs) I got the videos to see who this Boba Fett fellow was, and here’s hardly in them, though he had already become iconic by then. So I was, ‘Alright, I’m in.’ I remember they had the most amazing caterer, a New Zealander. We had great lunches on that film. (pictured, right; Morrison in full costume with George Lucas)

The Hollywood roles continue to come your way, most recently in Green Lantern…

I swore I’d never do another make-up character, but there you go! That was shot in New Orleans, very nice place, and it was a big make-up job. It can get very claustrophobic and very hot and sticky in that stuff. I got that because I’d worked with the director Martin Campbell on Vertical Limit and had that connection. He just called me up and said, ‘You’d make a great Abin Sur’. I could see (the production) was having their own set of problems, too. The shooting schedule and then the conversion to 3D, a whole set of deadlines to meet. I think the budget just went way out of control. And I was hoping to do another one because they were going to focus on my character!

Finally, how do you feel the New Zealand industry is travelling at present?

Our industry has been quite flat. There is a great void between work on Shortland Street and work on The Hobbit. Vast time and space, the Cosmos, that’s the New Zealand film industry. I was at the Maoriland Film Festival in Otaki last week (pictured, right; Morrison with attending US director, Blackhorse Lowe) and I spoke to a fine young filmmaker and he said that he would have to go and work now for five years to pay off his little film! That is how tough it is for these passionate, talented young filmmakers. But that’s just how Peter Jackson started and now he’s a mogul! I was with Himiona Grace just last week, whose a great guy and just got out there on the road and made his film, The Pa Boys, which is wonderful. That’s what it takes.

REQUIEM FOR A VILLAGE: THE KIMBERLEY JOSEPH INTERVIEW

Australian soap-opera fans fondly remember Kimberly Joseph, the radiant young actress who won the nation’s heart in the popular series Home and Away and All Saints. But her starlet days are a distant memory for the LA-based Australian-Canadian; despite acting in such hits as Cold Feet and Lost, for most of the last decade she has shared production duties with Adam Schomer on her passion project, The Polygon. This heartbreaking documentary captures the hardships and humanity of a Kazakh village called Sarzahl, located a mere 18 kilometres from what was once the largest nuclear test site on Russian soil. Having recently attended its World Premiere at the 2014 Gold Coast Film Festival, the debutant director spoke to SCREEN-SPACE about her many visits to the region, the villagers she has grown close to (pictured, below; Joseph, far right) and the fate of an irradiated landscape that a cash-rich government refuses to tend to….

The fateful nature of your involvement with the Semipalatinsk region in Kazakhstan began with a chance meeting on a plane with Scottish MP Struan Stevenson (pictured, below). What do you recall of that first meeting, over ten years ago?

He spoke with such passion about the conditions these people lived in and I was moved so much, I said let me know if there is anything I can do to help. A few months later I was on the ground in Kazakhstan. There are so many humanitarian issues, so many people suffering in the world, I’ve been asked why focus in on this and my answer is that it came about very organically, that I was pointed in this direction by chance. Having met the villagers first hand, I knew I had to do more for them. That began with a photographic exhibition in Scotland in 2004 then New York City in 2007 to raise money.* The villagers (are) convinced that he was instrumental in raising the awareness needed to help them.

You travelled back and forth to the region over the course of the production, but can you recall your first impression of the landscape and the people?

They were initially nervous about telling their stories but they really needed to. They hadn’t had the opportunity to do that. These people are very well-read, very proud people. They are living in villages that have not been improved since the Soviets left; roads have not been maintained, access to clean water is scarce. There is very little trade in the area, just a couple of shops that sell potatoes and rice; they exist on the small income they make off their livestock. It is truly remote.

How did the ruling Kazakhstan government treat your presence?

When we travelled through the region, a local government official accompanied us. And the villagers were livid that this man had never been out to see them, which I found very upsetting. The people had lost children and grandchildren; generations had been affected by the test site and they had gotten no attention from this man or his government. The country uses the closure of The Polygon as a drawcard, proud of their relinquishing of the nuclear arsenal. It should be noted that it was the previous Soviet regime that detonated the weapon, not the independent Kazakh state. But while (the new leaders) admit that these villagers have been affected and acknowledge high cancer rates and other effects with some very carefully worded press releases, they are doing very little about it.  This government has so much wealth and sits on such a richness of natural resources, there is just no excuse for them not to be paying attention to the people of Sarzahl.

In the years since Mikhail Gorbachev’s Glasnost period of reform led to the closure of the site, has any criminal action against the masterminds behind The Polygon tests been considered? 

So much of what went on was shrouded in that Cold War ‘top secret’ status, that establishing fault in hindsight is impossible. There are accounts of the deceased being flown out of the region and buried elsewhere so that the cause of death could not be traced or linked (to the testing). A lot of the records and reports were taken elsewhere and destroyed. Medical officers and workers involved in the project were just not allowed to talk about it for fear of imprisonment. And the people in the villages, who would watch the explosions from their homes, had no idea that the radioactivity would settle on them. Everything points to these villagers being used as human guinea pigs. They moved them initially, but then they didn’t.

Following this World Premiere, your film will eventually make its way back to the people of the Sarzahl and the politicians that rule over them. How do you feel about this ten-year project nearing completion? What would be the best possible outcome for you?

I’ll be a little nervous to see how the government responds to it, but I know that the villages will be very happy. And that was always my intention, to give them an outlet to tell their stories and to impress upon the government the inherent human value of these beautiful people and their villages. They are the keepers of the Kazakh culture and without them, the Kazakhstan of old will disappear. I am hopeful that in the future these people, who want to be so much more connected to their country and its government, will get what they need. My only hope is that I do the people and the story of their plight justice. I hope that the film can raise awareness of the suffering of the people around The Polygon and inspire their government to help them in meaningful ways.

*The photos can be seen in Struan Stevenson’s 2006 book, Crying Forever: A Nuclear Diary. 

MEDICINE MAN: THE DAVID GOULD INTERVIEW

With mentors that include director Peter Jackson and editor Jamie Selkirk, Queensland-born director David Gould was never far from visionary inspiration. Since relocating to Wellington, New Zealand, Gould rose to senior effects director on The Two Towers and The Return of The King, King Kong and The Adventures of Tintin, all the time working towards a director’s chair of his own. After the well-received shorts Inseparable Coil, Awaken and The Seed, Gould guided to fruition his self-penned feature debut, the low-budget/high-concept action thriller The Cure. Gould chatted with SCREEN-SPACE the morning after the Australian premiere at the recent Gold Coast Film Festival…

The film exudes a very international look and feel; the actors speak with US accents and, most impressively, Wellington stands in convincingly for San Diego…

There was an article in one of the papers that I was unaware of, but they had taken photos of the harbour area of San Diego and compared them to Wellington and they look very similar. Ultimately, because all the film takes place in the research facility, I didn’t need that big establishing shot, though I always had it in my mind when shooting.

It avoids many of the pitfalls that first-time filmmakers succumb to, such as over-reaching budgetary constraints.

The key thing for me was that, because I had had so much experience in visual effects and knew that I’d be doing the visual effects stuff all by myself, I knew what was going to be hard and what was going to be easy. I avoided green screen work, because that can be relatively expensive and time consuming, instead creating the overlaying images just on my set up at home (laughs). That starts all the way back in the scripting stage for me. When I’m writing, I’m conscious of how I’m going to shoot it and what set-ups I’ll need to get the shot.

The strong sense of story that you exhibited with the gentler dramatic short, The Seed, is still there in The Cure, despite it being a very different work. Was their much narrative that got fleshed out in post-production?

When it came to editing, I met with many of the best in the industry in Wellington, including Jamie Selkirk (pictured, left), who is retired now. I’d edit to a certain point then give it to him for feedback. John (Woodford) was also great, giving me notes. It is a really good process for a filmmaker to do. I’ve edited all my films and with a final vision in my head when shooting, it allows me to be really efficient with my set-ups. I also did all the effects work, and there are 141 effects shots in the film, which used all my experience and allowed me to work to a very clear vision.

Were there definite influences that occurred to you while shooting The Cure?

When I set out to do a high-concept film on a low budget, I had to define how best that would be achieved. I looked to Die Hard, a fully contained thriller that pretty much all takes pace indoors. I knew that would be important, especially shooting in Wellington and knowing what the weather can be like (laughs). So we blacked out all the windows of the studio to create that artificial light interior feel. The work that I aspire to includes that of James Cameron, whose very early films like The Terminator achieve an amazing level of action and quality on a limited budget (pictured, right; the director in pre-production on The Cure with department heads).

Like a lot of Cameron’s work, there is a strongly defined female central character who allows for an emotional core in the story. When did Antonia Prebble (pictured, left) come on board?

I had never seen her in anything before. We put the call out for auditions and news that there was a strong female action lead spread really quickly. We got all the actors with any experience applying, whether they were in Shortland Street or the theatre. When Antonia auditioned, I turned to my casting director Liz and we both just knew. She got the character completely on the first go. From there, she was the benchmark. What was remarkable about her performance was that she was often called on to get complex scenes, with both action and emotion, on the first or second take. She had worked on (TV series) The Tribe and Shortland Street, so knew how to shoot fast. We didn’t have time or budget for lots of multiple takes, and her experience helped immensely.

You’ve experienced the world of low-budget filmmaking both here and in New Zealand. Are there key differences?

Yeah, I’d made the short film Inseparable Coil here and had gone back to New Zealand principally for the work. I’d been there for two years, working in post-production on Peter Jackson’s films, before starting work on The Cure. I didn’t know anyone from the casting world, that whole pre-production sector, so I had to establish working relationships really quickly. The advantage of being based in Wellington is the influence that Peter Jackson has had on the local sector. So many people have become so cashed-up after working on his films, they can happily take time off to help on smaller projects like The Cure. And then there are the staunchly independent film crews, many of which passed on working on The Hobbit to work with my shoot, which I really appreciated. New Zealand crews are really passionate, dedicated people.

And now The Cure is finding appreciative audiences all over the world. What direction does your career take now?

I’ve just seen the Spanish dub of the film, which was a surreal experience (laughs). And I get the German language version next week, which will make another interesting addition to the film’s timeline. It played really well just a few weeks ago in Japan. The Cure has exceeded my expectations based upon its budget and its acceptance and will serve as a great calling-card, letting financiers and producers know I can make sellable, commercial action projects.  

WONG KAR-WAI BACK IN FAVOUR WITH HONG KONG AWARDS BODY

Wong Kar-Wai’s epic, intimate fusion of intrigue and action, The Grandmaster (pictured, below), has dominated the 33^rd annual Hong Kong Film Awards, held overnight at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre.

The front-runner for top honours with 14 nominations, Wong’s most celebrated movie in years took home Best Film and Best Director honours. The gongs add to an awards season tally that has seen the film earn similar kudos from the Asian Film Awards, Shanghai Film Critics Awards and Hong Kong Film Critics Awards.

“I remember it was 1994 when I was last here,” said the director (pictured, right) in his winner’s speech, referring to his last trophy from the prestigious body, for Chungking Express. “It was a short walk from the podium to the stage, but it took me 20 years to come back to this spot.” Prior to that, he had won the directing category for 1990’s Days of Being Wild.

The Grandmaster’s 2014 haul would total 12 trophies, including Zhang Jin’s Best Supporting Actor win, Cinematography and Costume (the categories that earned the film Oscar nominations earlier this year), as well as Makeup, Original Score, Action Choreography, Art Direction, Editing and Sound Design.

None proved more popular than Zhang Ziyi’s Best Actress triumph (pictured, left; with her award) for her role as dynastic martial arts leader Gong Er. It is the sixth major trophy she has snared and crowns a tumultuous period for the Chinese actor, who has seen her private life become gossip fodder and box office might wane in recent years. In an emotional speech, the actress said “I shed a lot of tears. I’m worked up not because I feel wronged but because I feel grateful.”

The Best Actor category went to Nick Cheung for his role in Dante Lam’s MMA crowd-pleaser Unbeatable; horror opus Rigor Mortis earned Best Supporting Actress honours for Kara Wai and tech kudos for its visual effects; and, Adam Wong’s drama The Way We Dance won the young filmmaker the coveted Best New Director award, as well as Best Newcomer (Babyjohn Choi) and original song. The directorial debut of actress Zhao Wei, the college-set romantic drama So Young, was awarded the Cross-Straits Best Film Award, celebrating works from mainland China and Taiwan.

The Hong Kong Film Awards ceremony represents a glamorous end to the 10^th annual Entertainment Expo, a three week celebration of the region’s visual arts industry. International contingents from the film, television, music and new media sectors converged on the harbour city to attend such events as the International Film and TV Market (FILMART), the Hong Kong International Film Festival, the Asian Visual Effects and Digital Entertainment Summits, the Asian Film Financing Forum (HAF) and Asian-Pop Music Festival.

Here is the full list of 2014 Hong Kong Film awards nominees; winners are highlighted.

Best Film:
 The Grandmaster - Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons
- The Way We Dance
- The White Storm
- Unbeatable

Best Director:
 Wong Kar Wai (The Grandmaster) - Johnnie To (Drug War)
- Benny Chan (The White Storm)
- Derek Kwok (As the Light Goes Out)
- Dante Lam (Unbeatable)

Best Screenplay:
 Zou Jingzhi, Xu Haofeng, Wong Kar Wai (The Grandmaster) - Zhou Zhiyong, Zhang Ji, Aubrey Lam (American Dreams in China)
- Xue Xiaolu (Finding Mr. Right)
- Wai Ka Fai, Yau Nai Hoi, Ryker Chan, Yu Xi (Blind Detective)
- Jack Ng, Fung Chi Fung, Dante Lam (Unbeatable)

Best Actor:
 Tony Leung (The Grandmaster)
- Louis Koo (The White Storm)
- Sean Lau (The White Storm)
- Anthony Wong (Ip Man: The Final Fight)
- Nick Cheung (Unbeatable)

Best Actress:
 Zhang Ziyi (The Grandmaster) - Tang Wei (Finding Mr. Right)
- Cherry Ngan (The Way We Dance)
- Sammi Cheng (Blind Detective)
- Nina Paw (Rigor Mortis)

Best Supporting Actor:
 Zhang Jin (The Grandmaster) - Tong Dawei (American Dreams in China)
- Huang Bo (Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons)
- Eddie Peng (Unbeatable)
- Antony Chan (Rigor Mortis)

Best Supporting Actress:
 Du Juan (American Dreams in China)
- Carina Lau (Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon)
- Law Lan (The White Storm)
- Crystal Lee (Unbeatable)
- Kara Hui (Rigor Mortis)

Best New Performer:
 Du Juan (American Dreams in China)
- Fish Liew (Doomsday Party)
- Lin Gengxin (Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon)
- Babyjohn Choi (The Way We Dance) - Angel Chiang (A Secret Between Us)

Best Cinematography:
 Philippe Le Sourd (The Grandmaster) - Anthony Pun (The White Storm)
- Jason Kwan (As the Light Goes Out)
- Kenny Tse (Unbeatable)
- Ng Kai Ming (Rigor Mortis)

Best Film Editing:
 William Chang, Benjamin Courtines, Poon Hung Yiu (The Grandmaster) - Kwong Chi Leung, Ron Chan (Firestorm)
- Yau Chi Wai (The White Storm)
- Wong Hoi (As the Light Goes Out)
- Azrael Chung (Unbeatable)

Best Art Direction:
 William Chang, Alfred Yau (The Grandmaster) - Eric Lam (Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons)
- Ken Mak (Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon)
- Eric Lam (As the Light Goes Out)
- Irving Cheung (Rigor Mortis)

Best Costume & Makeup Design:
 William Chang (The Grandmaster) - Dora Ng (American Dreams in China)
- Lee Pik Kwan, Bruce Yu (Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons)
- Lee Pik Kwan, Bruce Yu (Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon)
- Miggy Cheng, Phoebe Wong, Kittichon Kunratchol (Rigor Mortis)

Best Action Choreography:
 Yuen Woo Ping (The Grandmaster) - Yuen Bun (Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon)
- Chin Ka Lok (Firestorm)
- Donnie Yen (Special ID)
- Ling Chi Wah (Unbeatable)

Best Original Film Score:
 Shigeru Umebayashi, Nathaniel Mechaly (The Grandmaster) - Kenji Kawai (Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon)
- Day Tai, Afuc Chan (The Way We Dance)
- Teddy Robin, Tomy Wai (As the Light Goes Out)
- Henry Lai (Unbeatable)

Best Original Film Song:
 “New Order” (from Young and Dangerous: Reloaded)
- “Let’s Dance Crazily” (from The Way We Dance) - “Blind Love” (from Blind Detective)
- “Lifelong Sympathy” (from The White Storm)
- “Love is the Greatest” (from As the Light Goes Out)

Best Sound Design:
 Robert Mackenzie, Traithep Wongpaiboon (The Grandmaster) - Kinson Tsang (Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon)
- Phyllis Cheng (As the Light Goes Out)
- Phyllis Cheng (Unbeatable)
- Benny Chu, Steve Miller (Rigor Mortis)

Best Visual Effects:
 Pierre Buffin (The Grandmaster)
- Wook Kim (Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon)
- Yee Kwok Leung, Lai Man Chun, Ho Kwan Yeung, Garrett K. Lam (Firestorm)
- Henri Wong, Hugo Kwan, Walter Wong (As the Light Goes Out)
- Enoch Chan (Rigor Mortis)

Best New Director:
 Adam Wong (The Way We Dance) - Alan Yuen (Firestorm)
- Juno Mak (Rigor Mortis)

Best Film from Mainland China and Taiwan:
 Rock Me to the Moon (Taiwan)
- Lost in Thailand (China)
- The Last Supper (China)
- Touch of the Light (Taiwan)
- So Young (China)

IN TOO DEEP: JEMIMA ROBINSON AND THE OCEAN FILM FESTIVAL

As the month-long run of the Ocean Film Festival Australia (OFFA) nears its end, Festival Director Jemima Robinson reflects upon her vision to bring a celebration of oceanic culture to a population with a close affinity to the aquatic landscape. The morning after the sold-out session at Sydney’s prestigious Cremorne Orpheum Theatre, Robinson spoke to SCREEN-SPACE about her passion for the marine environment and the filmmaking that brings it to life on the bigscreen…

“Our mission is to inspire people to appreciate and care for our oceans,” she says of her 2014 programme, which features 12 shorts that screen over 2 hours. “We were really working along the Jacques Cousteau principal, (that) people will naturally want to protect what they love, so our overriding vision is to foster that love of the ocean.”  To this end, Robinson and her team sought key partnerships with environmental bodies such as Project Aware and the Nature Conservation Council, ensuring that audiences inspired by what they had just seen had avenues to pursue immediately. Says Robinson, “We felt it was important to offer our audience practical ways (in which) they can personally have a positive impact.”

The inaugural event came about after Robinson (pictured, right), as Director of the adventure-film promotional initiative Adventure Reels, oversaw the 2013 Australian schedule for the renowned San Francisco Ocean Film Festival (the group is also responsible for successfully shepherding a local season of the popular BANFF Mountain Film Festival). This year, she felt it was crucial to brand a local event, with homegrown content mixed into the screening schedule alongside works from around the globe.

“Local filmmakers have been incredibly supportive of the initiative, especially Tim Bonython and Mark Tipple,” she acknowledges. An internationally recognized producer, Bonython cut a short from his 2012 documentary Immersion, featuring the daredevil surfers who tackle the treacherous swells of Tasmania’s Shipstern’s Bluff; Tipple produced Duct Tape Surfing, the extraordinary story of a paraplegic who was able to experience the thrill of a board ride while taped to big-wave surfer Tyron Swan.

These films play alongside the very best of global aquatic cinema. From France, Via Decouvertes’ People Under The Sea (pictured, top) chronicles the installation of statue art under the Caribbean Sea; Hawaiian Kimi Werner explores her relationship with the ocean in the stunning odyssey, Variables; the culture of the Haenyeo, South Korea’s free-diving women, is revealed in Women of the Sea; the myriad of microscopic lifeforms who inhabit a Balinese feather hydroid are captured in the award-winning Hydropolis; Guilklame Nery, single-breath free dive world record holder, is profiled in the Sportlife Saga episode, Water, from The Netherlands; a quirky comedic short from Irish director Orla Walsh, Riders to the Sea; and, the breathtaking sand artistry of Tony Plant is celebrated in ‘Till The Luck Runs Out.

Of particular note are the Australian premieres of works from the Italian pair Daniele Iop and Manfred Bortoli, two of the genre’s most respected filmmakers. The Trip, a surreal odyssey that tracks two water molecules as they journey the great ocean currents of the world, recently won the Silver Prize at the Marseille Festival of Underwater Images; and the breathtaking The Giant and The Fisherman (pictured, right), which captures the interaction between Indonesian fishermen and the whale sharks of Cenderawasih Bay.

At the Sydney screening, audiences were particularly engaged by Englishman Ben Finney’s And Then We Swam (featured, below), the hugely entertaining story of two adventure seeking Brits who set out to row the 3500 miles of open water between Australia’s western coast and the island of Mauritius. In addition to being a funny and thrilling study of the human spirit, their journey captures the physical scale and emotional scope of mankind’s relationship with the ocean.

It is a broad selection reflective of the many aspects of man’s co-existence with the sea and its surrounds. Jemima Robinson knew the greatest hurdle she had to overcome was the perception that the Ocean Film Festival would be a greenie love-in. “Having attended a number of ocean environment events in the past I often had the feeling that they were preaching to the converted,” she says. “We really wanted to break from this mould and make the OFFA accessible and enjoyable to everyone, even someone who has never set foot in the ocean. Rather than showing a program full of problems, we aimed to show a program full of inspiration, that would make our audiences fall in love with the ocean.”

Robinson hopes that audiences will take from her festival a fresh perspective on this increasingly unsustainable imbalance between modern man and open water. Despite the breadth of issues raised and the consummate artistry on display in the programme, Robinson acknowledges that, “the message was always the same - there is a problem, this is the problem, this is how you can be involved in the solution.”

The Ocean Film Festival Australia has four engagements left of its 2014 Australian season before undertaking a European tour. Full details can be found at the festival’s official website.