I recently joined NZ On Screen as Project Director. I’ve long admired NZ On Screen for it’s spirit and beauty so it’s a huge privilege.
NZ On Screen is the online showcase of New Zealand television, film and music video. It’s fully funded by NZ On Air. There are over 1700 titles on the site, including iconic TV episodes, classic music videos, and landmark documentaries. All titles are free to watch.
I believe that when you place cultural artefacts online, you help democraticse access to it. You highlight heritage, encourage identity-making and engender creativity. Today’s most viewed title, This Way of Life, epitomises my view.
Filmed over four years, This Way of Life documents the story of Hawkes Bay hunter and horse wrangler Peter Ottley-Karena, wife Colleen (Ngāti Maniapoto), and their six children. Intercut with Peter’s articulate bush philosophy, it captures the family’s romantic, dignified relationship to each other and to the natural world. Ever-present amongst the challenges their commitment to a ‘simple life’ faces is Peter’s broken relationship with his step-father. Life received a special mention at the Berlin Film Festival; Variety called it “resonant and stunningly shot”.
Check it out if you have time. It’s a wildly romantic provocation and altogether a good way to start the year.
