Uni. boasts record number of film festival entries

Media Release
3 July 2006

University boasts record number of film festival entries

Six films made by current and former students of The University of Auckland’s Department of Film, Television and Media Studies feature in this year’s Auckland International Film Festival (July 13-30).

The films cover a wide range of style and content.

Sandor Lau directed and produced Squeegee Bandit, a hard-hitting, feature-length documentary about “Starfish”, a Maori car-window washer in South Auckland. Sandor describes himself as “New Zealand’s only Chinese-Hungarian-American”.

Sunil Narhsai is a New Zealand-born Indian whose four-minute short film, The Customer is Always Trite, is a humorous yet insightful look at life as a supermarket checkout cashier. The film is based on Sunil’s own experience working for eight years at a supermarket on Auckland’s North Shore. The film is directed by Greydon Little and produced by Roseanne Liang.

Marc Laureano is a Filipino who has lived in New Zealand for more than a decade. His 12-minute short film, Embers, depicts the terrifying dreams of a young woman in the South Island, who is waiting for her husband to return home from the Pacific War. Embers is produced by Chris Payne, who initiated the project.

Adam Luxton and Jeremy Dumble wrote and directed Ninety Percent, a 10-minute ensemble film about a diverse range of characters stumbling through their daily lives. And their short film, Rope, depicts a sudden burst of intensity from a suicidal man whose life has been worn down to the bone.
of intensity in a life that has been worn down
Chris White wrote and directed Loose Ends (Executive Producer, Vanessa Alexander), a nine-minute post-modern film noir set inside a towering urban hotel. A former medical student, Chris is now a prolific filmmaker, having written and directed five short films, two music videos and six commercials.

“This unprecedented number of selections reflects the quality and talent of the department’s production students,” says Head of Department Professor Duncan Petrie. “With four graduating years under the department’s belt, we are seeing the build-up of a critical mass of high-quality filmmakers.”

Screening schedules are listed in the Auckland International Film Festival Programme or online at www.nzff.co.nz.

ENDS

© Scoop Media