Sir Len Southward: The Man, His Machines, The Museum

Inside Citroën : la techno secrète de nos voitures

The Unnatural History of the Kakapo

The world's last kakapo population is plagued by a deadly curse. Without a cure, it could be the end of the world's rarest and strangest wild parrot.

Someone Else's Country

Someone Else’s Country looks critically at the radical economic changes implemented by the 1984 Labour Government - where privatisation of state assets was part of a wider agenda that sought to remake New Zealand as a model free market state. The trickle-down ‘Rogernomics’ rhetoric warned of no gain without pain, and here the theory is counterpointed by the social effects (redundant workers, Post Office closures). Made by Alister Barry in 1996 when the effects were raw, the film draws extensively on archive footage and interviews with key “witnesses to history”.

In a Land of Plenty

The story of unemployment in New Zealand and In A Land of Plenty is an exploration of just that; it takes as its starting point the consensus from The Depression onwards that Godzone economic policy should focus on achieving full employment, and explores how this was radically shifted by the 1984 Labour government. Director Alister Barry's perspective is clear, as he trains a humanist lens on ‘Rogernomics' to argue for the policy's negative effects on society, as a new poverty-stricken underclass developed.

Ram Raid Mums

Ram Raid Mums follows three desperate mothers, at their breaking point. With nowhere to turn, they discover Mana Inc, a lifeline that sparks hope.

Kinleith '80

Covers the 12-week-long strike at Kinleith Pulp and Paper Mill, owned by New Zealand Forest Products in January 1980.

Nightshave

A narrator recounts a story about his missing friend, the downfall of a sheep shearing gang and sightings of a hairy beast in 1980s rural New Zealand.

Fire And Fury

Who is driving a violent, misinformed New Zealand, and why? Fire and Fury is a Stuff Circuit investigation into disinformation in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Leninland

At the peak of Perestroika, in 1987, in the village of Gorki, where Lenin spent his last years, after a long construction, the last and most grandiose museum of the Leader was opened. Soon after the opening, the ideology changed, and the flow of pilgrims gradually dried up. Despite this, the museum still works and the management is looking for ways to attract visitors. Faithful to the Lenin keepers of the museum as they can resist the onset of commercialization. The film tells about the modern life of this amazing museum-reserve and its employees.

Games '74: Official Film of the Xth British Commonwealth Games, Christchurch, New Zealand, 1974

This chronicle of the Christchurch Commonwealth Games marked one of the National Film Unit's most ambitious productions. Though a range of events (including famous runs by John Walker and Dick Tayler), are covered, the film often bypasses the pomp and glory approach; instead it dares to talk to the injured and mention that most competitors lose. The closing ceremonies of the "friendly games" feature the athletes gathering to — as the official song's chorus put it — "join together". Four directors joined together to work on it: Arthur Everard, John King, Paul Maunder and Sam Pillsbury.

Our Aotearoa

An animated documentary that speaks to immigrants' personal experiences living in Aotearoa, exploring themes of racism, discrimination, loss, loneliness, and maintaining cultural ties while living in another country.

No Māori Allowed

When an academic unearths a forgotten history, residents of the small township of Pukekohe, including kaumātua who have never told their personal stories before, confront its deep and dark racist past.

Dame Valerie Adams: More Than Gold

Olympic Champion, Kiwi Icon, Tongan Leader, Orphan, Mother...winning was just part of the journey.

Four Shorts on Architecture

A visual essay on contemporary Kiwi architecture.

Momias De Quinto

Fifteen naturally mummified bodies were found during the excavations of 2011 in the old church of El Piquete, —a building that suffered almost total devastation as a consequence for being a refuge for civilians during the Spanish Civil War—, this discovery allowed the creation of the Museum of the Mummies of Quinto where this collection with unique characteristics in Spain is exhibited thanks to the research of historians, scientists, bio anthropologists and archaeologists.

Flare - A Ski Trip

A short documentary about freestyle skiing made for the New Zealand Tourist and Publicity Department.

This Island

How the art in the Detroit Institute of Art connects to life's experiences and the neighborhood.