Upcoming programmes and films not to miss on TVNZ heartland…

Hidden in the Numbers, Sunday January 29th, 7:30pm

Three-part series Hidden In The Numbers that looks at what statistics tell us about ourselves. Presented by comedian Te Radar, the series uses the NZ Census and other statistical information to document the changing face of New Zealand culture and life, and reveals the often unseen patterns that have shaped our society and made us who we are today.

Hidden In The Numbers also looks back at past statistics and examines the ways we have changed – both as individuals and as a nation. It looks at where we live; where we work; what we do with our spare time; how much money we have; how long we have to work to buy bread, are we getting richer or poorer, is it easier or harder to make ends meet than it used to be, what we buy; what we eat, how much we drink; what’s happening to our bodies our families, kids, marriage and divorce – they are all covered.

Location, Location, Location, Sunday January 29th, 8:30pm

Shot round the North Island, this series sees the extremes of human behaviour as the endurance of buyers and sellers are put to the test in the property market. Whether it’s the young couple making the big commitment and buying their first home together, or the classic investor looking for a do-up property on which to make a buck, the series sees a range of suburbs and house prices and situations you can relate to.

On tonight’s episode, Oliver looks a lot like other four-year-old kids.  The difference is he has autism, which seriously limits the way he interacts with the world. Gareth and Amanda know that intensive one-on-one therapy at this early stage could have a big impact on Oliver’s Future. Early therapy can improve his outlook and for that Amanda and Gareth have to pay.  The best option is to sell the house, the house that Amanda fell in love with at first sight

Street Legal, Wednesday February 1st 10pm

Jay Laga’aia is David Silesi, the maverick lawyer who is always on the side of the underdog, in Street Legal, the fast-paced, high-action drama series filmed entirely in New Zealand.

David Silesi and his colleagues use unorthodox methods of getting at the truth to see justice done for their clients but often their personal lives turn out to be more dramatic as the stresses and strains of living life on the legal edge take their toll.

In this series, David and Joni’s law firm, Wyeth & Associates, is in trouble. The repo man starts taking the furniture. The overdraft has run over its limit. Joni turns to Adie for a loan to keep afloat, but there are conditions. Lack of cashflow is a continual worry for Joni, a concern not helped by David’s tendency to spend lots of time on non-paying cases.

Street Legal co-stars Katherine Kennard as David Silesi’s law partner (and former love Joni Collins) and Charles Mesure as his nemesis Detective Senior Sergeant Kees Van Dam. It also stars Louise Wallace, Dwayne Cameron, Ingrid Park, Manu Bennett, Ben Baker, and Cal Wilson.

Eagle Vs Shark, Friday February 3rd 7:30pm

Lily (Loren Horsley) crashes Jarrod’s (Jemaine Clement, The Flight of the Conchords) party, ends up in his home town and lands a leading role in his hell bent plan to beat up an old high school bully. They tackle estranged family and stranger friends, only to find the real foe may be in the mirror.

Waititi’s first feature film, Eagle Vs Shark delivers a poignant social punch about facing up to who you really are. It is about accepting the good, the bad and the honestly awful – and when that happens everything can change.

Robert Sarkies’ latest feature film, Two Little Boys, has been selected in competition at the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival, which will run February 9^th – 19th this year. 

The film will screen in the Generation section of the Festival and will be judged by two juries: a young person’s jury which awards the prestigious Crystal Bear to the best feature film in the programme, and an international expert jury which awards a cash prize to the best feature film in the programme. 

New Zealand Film Commission CEO, Graeme Mason, said today “It’s wonderful to start the New Year with further international A-list festival endorsement of our filmmaking talent.  The Generation selection compliments the film’s youthful energy and recognises the fresh perspective Rob offers with this film.  I congratulate Rob, Vicky, Tim and all the cast and crew on the film’s selection.”

Two Little Boys is Sarkies’ third feature (Out of the Blue, Scarfies), and is based on the novel of the same name by brother Duncan Sarkies.  The film was produced by Vicky Pope (Trouble is My Business, Choice Night, The Graffiti of Mr Tupaia) and Tim White (Out of the Blue, No. 2, The Boys are Back, Sleeping Beauty).

The film is an irreverent comedy about Nige (Bret McKenzie - Flight of the Conchords) and his recently estranged best mate Deano (Hamish Blake - Hamish and Andy).  The film follows Nige and Deano’s riotous misadventures as they struggle with their imploding long-term friendship which has been put under pressure by an unfortunate incident involving a hot meat pie, a ginger cat and the untimely death of a Scandinavian soccer star.

Two Little Boys was made with the support of the New Zealand Film Production Fund Trust (The Film Fund), New Zealand On Air, Southern Institute of Technology, Invercargill City Council, Community Trust of Southland, Invercargill Licensing Trust, Film Otago Southland, Fulcrum Media Finance and the NZ Film Commission.   NZ Film, the sales arm of the NZFC, is handling world sales of the film.  

The film is scheduled for a New Zealand release on March 15^th and is being distributed in New Zealand and Australia by Hopscotch Films. 

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA ENQUIRIES:  Jasmin McSweeney, NZ Film (Jasmin@nzfilm.co.nz or +64 4 382 7682)

NEW ZEALAND MEDIA ENQUIRIES: Adria Buckton, Trigger Marketing & Publicity on behalf of Hopscotch Films (adria_trigger@orcon.net.nzor 09 834 3348)

INTERNATIONAL SALES ENQUIRIES:  James Thompson, Head of Sales and Marketing, NZ Film (james@nzfilm.co.nz or +64 4 382 7695)

NEW ZEALAND

New kiwi short film, LAMBS, has been selected to screen at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival – widely regarded as the world’s premiere short film event.  LAMBS was selected from over 5,000 worldwide submissions.

Funded through the New Zealand Film Commission short film funding initiative,  Fresh Shorts, LAMBS tells the story of Jimmy, a big-hearted fourteen year old boy facing a difficult decision – stay in his abusive home to protect his younger siblings, or leave to start a new life of his own.

Written and directed by Wellington filmmaker, Sam Kelly, the script for LAMBS emerged from research for a feature film he is writing, and time spent meeting ‘at risk’ youth from Wellington, New Zealand. 

“There were similarities in many of their lives, often facing neglect, abuse, drugs, and gang affiliations. I felt disturbed that children in my developed country were in survival mode, yet moved by the courage and heart that many of the kids showed“ says Kelly.

The film was shot just outside Wellington, in the Porirua City suburb of Cannons Creek.   Casting Director, Yvette Reid, spent six months casting the film almost entirely from non-actors. Reid and Kelly scoured schools, supermarkets, boxing clubs and netball courts to audition over 300 people for the film.  The lead role of 14-year-old Jimmy was a challenging role to cast, needing both a tough exterior and emotional openness. Waka Rowlands instantly stood out with his naturalism, belief in the situation, and emotional access. Waka’s performance as Jimmy has impressed New Zealand casting directors, and promises bigger things. 

Kelly was awarded New Zealand Young Filmmaker of the Year in 2010 by the Screen Producer’s and Director’s Association (SPADA). Together with LAMBS producer, Tom Hern, and an outstanding creative and technical team, Kelly harnessed the Fresh Shorts funding with the SPADA prize pack to deliver an exceptional level of storytelling and craft.

The 34^th Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival 2012 runs between January 27^th and February 4^th 2012 -www.clermont-filmfest.com.

The Ricky Gervais Show

Sunday, January 1st at 7:30pm

**New series** The Ricky Gervais Show will premiere on TV 3 from Sunday, January 1^st at 11:30pm. The animated show features Gervais and his long-time collaborator Stephen Merchant (The Office, Extras), and revolves around the world of their unusual friend, Karl Pilkington (An Idiot Abroad).

Originally starting out as a radio program in the U.K. in 2005, Gervais and Merchant decided to turn the show into a podcast, bringing Pilkington, a radio producer they had met years earlier, along. Soon the podcasts began to focus particularly on the eccentric mind of Pilkington.

The podcast became wildly popular, gaining a Guinness World Record in 2007 for being the most-downloaded podcast on the Internet.

“It’s such a natural for animation,” Lisa Ullmann explains, Wildbrain Vice President. “We worked closely with Gervais figuring out how he wanted himself to look, as well as Steven and Karl.”

Drug Bust

Monday, January 2^nd at 7:30pm

Step inside the world of the New Zealand Police’s war on drugs. Drug Bust is a fast paced factual observational series that follows New Zealand’s largest police district, Counties Manukau, as they fight the war against drugs.

The district has the highest population in New Zealand but it is also one of the poorest regions – and with this comes crime. With unprecedented access, Drug Bust follows the district’s drug investigation teams as they take on the criminal underworld in a fight to take back their communities. From children living in meth houses to drug related violence, the viewer gets a birds-eye look at the damage drugs are doing to our communities.

Kalgoorlie Cops

Monday, January 2^nd at 8pm

The show takes a no-holds-barred look at the work of the 217 uniformed police and detectives who control the world’s largest police beat on the planet. Situated at the edge of the Nullabor Plain in the West Australian outback with a population of 32,000 people, Kalgoorlie is a town like no other.

Sprouting from the gold rush of 1893, these days the town is flush with money, miners, hookers and bikers – meaning there’s never a dull moment for Kalgoorlie’s cops.

From murders to drug trafficking, organised crime, theft, prostitution, domestic disputes and old-fashioned Friday night punch-ups, to searching for missing tourists and prospectors in the huge expanse of desert surrounding Kalgoorlie, this action-packed series takes a never before-seen look at the workings of the biggest police beat in the world.

Come Fly With Me

Friday, January 6^th at 9:30pm

The hilarious Matt Lucas and David Walliams (Little Britain) airport mockumentary, Come Fly With Me, is set in an airport and following the lives of the people who hold it all together – including airline owners, check-in staff, fast-food workers, immigration officers, pilots and cabin crew, as well as the passengers.

“Sometimes members of the public gather behind the camera and like to watch,” explains Lucas about the filming process. “But what you gain is hopefully a show that looks like no other comedy show; that has a kind of authenticity and a scale about it that you could not easily create in a studio, unless you had tens of millions of pounds to build one.”

Super City

Friday, January 6^th at 10pm

Super City is the local comedy series which sees Madeleine Sami (Jaquie Brown Diaries and Sione’s Wedding) hilariously transform into five very different characters all living in New Zealand’s super city.

Directed by Taika Waititi (Boy & Eagle vs. Shark), Super City sees Sami hilariously portraying five acutely observed and very different characters all living in Auckland.

There’s Pasha, an aging cheerleader clinging to her partying lifestyle; Azeem, an immigrant taxi driver embracing Maori culture; Jo, a closeted gym instructor in love with her best friend; Linda, the runt of her “old girls” clique fostering impoverished artists and Georgie, a homeless girl whose freedom is unexpectedly interrupted.

“Hopefully viewers will get a lot of laughs and take these unique personalities into their hearts…,” Madeleine Sami says about her onscreen characters.

Documentary: Katie: My Beautiful Face

Tuesday, January 3^rd at 9:30pm

Katie was young and beautiful, but a vicious acid attack destroyed her face. Now Katie: My Beautiful Face follows Katie as she tries to re-build her life.

A model and budding TV presenter, 24-year-old Katie had a glowing future ahead of her. But in 2008, a vicious acid attack destroyed her face, and with it her career and her life as she knew it.

More than a year on, and having undergone countless operations and rounds of physiotherapy, she has now chosen to give up her anonymity and tell her own story for the first time.

“I’ve decided to tell my story so that people know what these men did to me,” Kate explains to UK’s Channel 4. “To help people understand who have ignorance about people that look different, and for people not to be frightened of burns and the stigma attached to it, to understand that it’s still the same person underneath.”

Debut writer/director Tusi Tamasese’s Samoan language film, The Orator (O Le Tulafale), has been selected to screen in the Spotlight section of the 2012 Sundance International Film Festival.   The 2012 Sundance Film Festival runs from 19th – 29th January in and around Park City, Utah.  The Festival is widely regarded as the premiere US showcase for American and international independent film.

The Orator (O Le Tulafale) is New Zealand’s first ever submission for the Best Foreign Language Film category of the 2012 Academy Awards.  The film premiered in the Orizzonti section of the Venice International Film Festival receiving a Special Mention from the Orizzonti jury; the Art Cinema Award from the CICAE jury of the Festival and the CinemAvvenire Best Film Award from the jury of the Associazione Centro Internazionle CinemAvvenire.

More recently, The Orator (O Le Tulafale) script was shortlisted for the Best Feature Film Script Award of the Script Writers Awards of NZ, and lead actor F’afiaula Sanote was a finalist for the Best Performance by an Actor Award at the 5^th Asia Pacific Screen Awards. The film was honoured with the Audience Award at the Brisbane International Film Festival.

Introduced in 2010, the Spotlight section is described by the Festival as a tribute to the cinema we love, “Regardless of where these impressive films have played throughout the world, the Sundance Film Festival is thrilled to light a marquee for them.”

The Orator (O Le Tulafale) has been financed by the New Zealand Film Commission (NZFC) with assistance from the Government of Samoa.  It is currently in theatrical release in New Zealand and Australia with Transmission Films.   NZ Film, the sales arm of the NZFC, is handling world sales for the film.

For more about the Sundance Film Festival go here: http://www.sundance.org/festival/

The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) has announced the nominees for the Samsung AACTA Awards in 2012.

Internationally awarded animator, writer and director Adam Elliot joined actors Alexandra Schepisi, Daniel Henshall and Claudia Karvan at Sydney’s National Institute of Dramatic Arts (NIDA) to announce the nominees, which confirmed the strength of Australian film and television in 2011.

Highlighting the reach and diversity of our screen industry, the nominations are spread across 14 Feature Films (out of a possible 21), 14 Documentaries, four Short Animations, six Short Fiction Films and 23 Television Productions.

The strength of Award entrants and nominees confirms the creativity, passion and vitality of Australia’s film and television industry, and we thank all entrants, and congratulate all nominees in what was an exceptionally competitive year.

Winners of the inaugural Samsung AACTA Awards will be announced at two major events in Sydney – the Samsung AACTA Awards Luncheon, presented by Digital Pictures (Sunday 15 January) and the inaugural Samsung AACTA Awards Ceremony (Tuesday 31 January).

TVNZ has announced its new season of programming. The line-up includes all the biggest returning series as well as local dramas and international blockbuster movies.

Top picks for TV1 include a brand news series of Absolutely Fabulous and our own Sam Neill starring in a new drama called Alcatraz revolving around America’s most infamous prison, as well as more stories from Beyond the Darklands and Big Fat Gypsy Weddings.

New shows for TV2 include 2 Broke Girls and Chelsea Straight Up starring Laura Prepon from That 70s Show, as well as returning series such as American Idol and Go Girls.

For the full line-up visit the TVNZ website here.

The Adventures of Tintin has launched in Europe and there have been loads of reviews and articles in international media – The Daily Mail described it as “Spellbinding”. See the best bits at the Weta website and on Facebook.

The Art of The Adventures of Tintin book has also been released alongside the film. The book is signed by Weta Workshop lead conceptual designer on the movie, Chris Guise, and also comes with the exclusive Weta gift of Red Rackham’s Treasure Map.

Weta has announced that the World Premiere of An Unexpected Journey (The Hobbit Part 1) will have its world premiere in Wellington in late November next year!

For now you can get your own taste of Hobbiton with a Bag End Collector’s Edition from The Lord of the Rings – worth $US 250, visit wetanz.com to go in the draw.

Stephen Fry recently interviewed Peter Jackson about J.R.R. Tolkien and his use of language. Check out the Youtube clip here

Maori Television is presenting the free-to-air exclusive premiere of the critically acclaimed New Zealand documentary  OPERATION 8 – which looks into the 2007 anti-terror raids.

The documentary screens on Sunday, 30 October at 8.30pm, four years after the nationwide raids that resulted in 18 arrests and just weeks after the Government passed controversial covert surveillance legislation.

In October 2007, more than 300 police raided 60 houses around the country, many in the Ruatoki valley in the heart of Tuhoe country.

The raids followed more than a year of surveillance of Maori sovereignty and peace activists accused of attending terrorist training camps in the Urewera ranges.

Directed by Errol Wright and Abi King-Jones, OPERATION 8 asks questions about who was targeted and how evidence was gathered, andincludes first-hand accounts from some of those arrested as well as academics and professionals involved in the case.

The case against the so-called “Urewera 18” has been mired in debate from the start. In September this year, the Supreme Court’s ruling that some evidence was inadmissible resulted in charges against 13 of the 18 being dropped.

It also led to the Government’s passing of a covert surveillance bill under urgency this month.

Made over three years, OPERATION 8 is a must-see for all New Zealanders interested in the debate between personal freedoms and national security.

Tune in to OPERATION 8 on Maori Television, screening Sunday, 30 October at 8.30pm.