Currently there are three quality NZ movies screening at cinemas. These are The Insatiable Moon, Matariki, and After the Waterfall. Each of them represent genuine kiwi stories, brought to the screen through years of struggle and effort. Any one of them would have been regarded as a local triumph not so long ago.

New Zealanders have traditionally prided themselves on their support for local film. We’ve all celebrated the success of Boy, which took a record NZ$9m at the box office here. But does that mean that the entire appetite for NZ film has been sated? Can we only cope with one success at a time? Each week the product of the American machine floods our cinemas and takes away profits that kiwi filmmakers can only dream of. Do we still, despite our protests, exhibit a certain amount of cultural cringe?

The wonderful NZ feature doco This Way of Life has been shortlisted for Oscar qualification this week. It’s a self-funded documentary by Tom & Sumner Burstyn which has wowed audiences across the world and won so many awards at festivals that there’s no room to include them all on the poster! The film was self-distributed, and had a good run – delighting audiences locally. You might think that with this kind of success, the filmmakers would be flush with cash. But like the vast majority of NZers in the industry, they’re still fighting to get funds together for their future projects.

I’m not arguing for NZers to make a special dispensation for local films – they must be allowed to stand or fall on the basis of their competitive quality. My question is whether they are currently (apart from the ONE), being offered equal footing alongside the steady diet of pap.

Come on kiwis – get out there and support your own talent!

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