‘I Stand For Consent’ – McClymont’s Catalyst for Change

DEGANZ member and advocate for comprehensive consent education, Liv McClymont‘s short documentary I Stand For Consent premieres on World Sexual Health Day. Perfectly enough, this year’s theme is consent.

Motivated by a survey exposing the extent of sexual harassment and harm at her former high school, Liv returns to amplify the students’ call for change. Through interviews with students, principals, experts, and even Liv’s own mother, the doc exemplifies the urgent need for compulsory consent education in schools.

Despite the heavy topic, Olivia aims to discuss sexual harm with a sense of hope and empowerment. In her director’s statement, she says,

As someone who lives with the trauma of sexual harm, it was important to me that this flm focussed on the way forward, rather than dwelling on the disheartening reality of the issue. I wanted to create a film that survivors could watch with pride and that would inspire change in our communities. And, rather than just spreading awareness – I wanted to take action.

The creators behind I Stand For Consent present the film as a rallying cry for change. They provoke viewers to think about how sexual harm is normalised in society and show the steps forward. It calls upon us all to support the quest for better sexual violence prevention, inspiring a safer future for generations to come.

The doc was commissioned through Series 7 of Someday Stories, an annual collection of social and sustainability-focused short films made by emerging creatives in Aotearoa.

Watch the doc on socials and RNZ from 4 September.

Last updated on 31 August 2023

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‘Te Whakairo’ Portrays Wildlife Through an Art Lens

Congratulations to DEGANZ members Vanessa Wells and Emma Smart for their short film making the Wild Earth Oceania Film Festival (WEOFF) selection! Te Whakairo – Ngā Kī o Te Tai Ao (The Carvings Carry the Stories of the World), directed and produced by Vanessa and edited by Emma, follows two skilled carvers from opposite ends of Aotearoa on their journey to and mahi in Antarctica.

James York (Ngāi Tahu, Ngā Puhi) and Poutama Hetaraka (Ngāti Wai, Ngāi Tahu) bring their toi whakairo (carving) to Antarctica as part of Aotearoa’s kaitiakitanga (guardianship) of The Ross Sea, the world’s largest protected marine area. They travelled as part of the mātauranga Māori perspective of the five-year Ross Sea Marine Protected Area monitoring programme and the Community Engagement Programme with Antarctica NZ. For the film, Vanessa accompanied them to Antarctica.

The 14-minute short will screen in the festival’s Wildlife Through an Art Lens programme on 10-11 September in Sydney. WEOFF is Australia’s first film festival to focus purely on wildlife. It aims to create a thriving and sustainable future for wildlife and people in Oceania by showcasing wildlife, Indigenous, environmental, and natural history films.

Te Whakairo – Ngā Kī o Te Tai Ao premiered in 2019 at Show Me Shorts. Since then, it has played at the Polar Film Festival in New York, FIFO in Tahiti, CSFF in China, the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival, and the Earth Futures Festival.

Best of luck to Vanessa, Emma, and the team at the festival!

Last updated on 31 August 2023

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Barne’s ‘River of Freedom’ Flows to Cinemas

Feature documentary River of Freedom, directed by Gaylene Barnes (DEGANZ), premieres on 5 September before its general cinema release from the 7th.

The film gets to the heart of the 2022 COVID mandate protests, told from the inside of the movement. Gaylene and the team documented Aotearoa’s largest protest in recent history, from the nationwide convoy to the 23-day Parliament occupation. They share the stories of the protesters – who they were, why they were there, and what happened on the front lines.

To cover such an expansive protest, the team divided and conquered, documenting the movement from different parts of the country. While Gaylene went to Bluff to film the key organisers and the convoy’s inception, cinematographer Mark Lapwood captured Cape Reinga’s convoy. The film also thanks all the independent media and filmmakers who contributed.

The film is entirely crowdfunded, having raised over $100k through their Buymeacoffee campaign. The team received support from over 1,600 people with most donations spanning between $25 and $200.

Check here to see when you can catch River of Freedom in your local cinema.

Last updated on 31 August 2023

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‘K Road Chronicles’ – a Celebration of the Human Spirit

K’ Road Chronicles is back for a third groundbreaking season with DEGANZ member Benjamin Murray on board as assistant editor.

The web series amplifies the voices of the homeless and impoverished in Aotearoa. It all started with transgender journalist Six, who publishes a street newspaper of the same name that shares the authentic stories of people living on Auckland’s Karangahape Road. She has since taken these stories to the screen with the docu-series. She interviews ‘streeties’ and tells their stories through a uniquely empathic lens, as she was homeless herself and called K’ Road home for many years.

Since the series’ inception in 2019, when Six wanted to explore how COVID-19 impacted people living on the streets, the show has amassed great success. While season one was produced using the NZOA minority interest fund, later seasons (still made with the support of NZOA) are presented with Stuff, bringing these stories to a more mainstream and wider audience. Yet, the show does not shy away from the taboo when discussing the realities of homelessness. Six unabashedly dives into topics of drug use and abuse, poverty, sex work, inequality, and social justice.

This season, audiences meet Raymond, a former gang enforcer who turned his life around by helping others, and Danielle, who started feeding the hungry while she was homeless. The show catches up with Mickey the Rat, a former drug dealer and addict living in a cemetery. The show also highlights efforts to ease the lives of the homeless. Episode one looks at how Orange Sky, an Australian charity, provides mobile shower and laundry services to rough sleepers.

Six writes in a Stuff article,

In this third season, K’ Road Chornicles goes even deeper, bringing forth informative, suprising, touching, and captivating stories.

Watch as season three premieres on Stuff now!

Last updated on 31 August 2023

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A Local Film for Horror Genre Lovers: ‘God’s Favourites Fall Hardest’

Help DEGANZ member Brian Gill bring short film God’s Favourites Fall Hardest to life by supporting the project’s Boosted campaign. Brian is taking on multiple roles for the film as the editor and producer.

The short calls upon and pays homage to nunsploitation films, the Italian Giallo slasher murder-mystery genre, and other classic horror motifs. The 6-8 minute thriller follows an amnesiac nun working to uncover her church’s secrets against the efforts of a cult leader seeking psychological control.

While aiming to crowdfund $3,300 on Boosted, the team is also looking to various filmmaking grants, both locally and internationally. The support from the Boosted will go towards paying for the film’s shooting location (a classical Gothic church in Remuera Tāmaki Makaurau), hiring the camera department, and paying for unit and art department costs.

Boosted is all or nothing, so if the team doesn’t meet their goal, all funds return to donors. While high-risk, this strategy raises Boosted campaigns success rates by raising the stakes.

You can support Brian and the team by donating to the Boosted campaign or following them on Facebook and Instagram!

Last updated on 29 August 2023

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