Small-town New Zealand documentary makes it onto the big screen!
Whanganui, New Zealand (Thursday 20 April 2017) – ‘Set in Stone’, a feature-length documentary made with lots of aroha
and a tiny budget in small-town New Zealand has been selected from hundreds of world-wide entries for screening at the
prestigious Doc Edge International Documentary Festival.
‘Set in Stone’ is the story of Herewini Whakarua, a Māori soldier from Whanganui who served in the Māori contingent in
World War 1. Memoralised in stone on the top of a monument that stands in in the gardens of Pākaitore,Whanganui, his
story had been lost until a community came together to restore the monument.
“At its heart, this documentary is a story about a small-town community doing what small-town communities do best –
caring for those within it. These people not only put a monument back together, they restored the memory of a man whose
story was long forgotten”, says Melita Farley, producer of the film.
Kevin Double, the documentary’s director, originally from England, says “making this documentary was a labour of love,
my way of paying respect to the town I now call home. The re-construction of Herewini’s monument was fascinating to
witness and really united a group of diverse people - Māori and Pākehā, German and English. It was their skill and
passion for their work that interested me. I spent hundreds of hours making this, but I couldn’t have done it without
them.”
‘Set in Stone’ is a gentle film told with heart. A story of real life in regional New Zealand. To be able to tell that
story to Auckland and Wellington audiences at such a prestigious event as DocEdge is fantastic,” says Double.
‘Set in Stone’ has its world premiere in Wellington on May 16 and has its first screening in Auckland on 31 May.
Doc Edge Festival: Doc Edge screens the best international and homegrown documentaries from 10 – 21 May in Wellington, and 24 May – 5
June in Auckland. For more info check out docedge.nz.
ends