Four New Zealand feature films and a New Zealand short have been selected to screen at the Edinburgh International Film Festival.
Whina and Nude Tuesday will have their European premieres at the festival while Juniper and Millie Lies Low will premiere for UK audiences. Independently funded short film, fire in the water, fire in the sky from filmmaker Mīria George will also screen in Edinburgh, in the New Shorts: On Leaving strand. This collection of short films explores the theme of migration, from the anticipation of the move, through the physical journeying, to the psychological toll exacted and the consequences and complications of finding yourself somewhere else.
New Zealand-Australia co-production Nude Tuesday will screen as the Central Gala film. Directed by Armagan Ballantyne, produced by Emma Slade, Virginia Whitwell and Nick Batzias and based on a screenplay by Jackie van Beek from a story devised by herself and Ballantyne, Nude Tuesday is spoken entirely in an improvised, gibberish-esque language with subtitles created by British comedian and writer Julia Davis (Camping).
Whina will screen in The Chamber programme which features quality arthouse for the culturally conscious. Directed by Paula Whetu Jones and James Napier Robertson, written by Paula Whetu Jones, James Napier Robertson and James Lucas and produced by Matthew Metcalfe and Tainui Stephens, Whina is currently screening in New Zealand cinemas where it has made over $1M at the New Zealand box office.
Juniper, written and directed by Matthew Saville and produced by Desray Armstrong and Angela Littlejohn and Millie Lies Low, directed by Michelle Savill, written by Michelle Savill and Eli Kent and also produced by Armstrong and Littlejohn will both screen in the festival’s Heartbreakers programme, featuring friends, family, lovers and cheaters.
“It is great to see such a strong selection of New Zealand films selected to screen in Edinburgh,” said acting CEO Mladen Ivancic. “These films showcase the enormous range and diversity of stories New Zealand filmmakers are telling. Each has a uniquely New Zealand voice and perspective yet obviously resonates with audiences around the globe.”
Edinburgh International Film Festival Creative Director Kristy Matheson said, “This year my programming colleagues and I were wowed by the creativity and depth of talent from New Zealand’s storytellers. From the deeply human and empathetic emotional core of fire in the water, fire in the sky, to the moving, big screen epic, Whina, the whip-smart comedy of Millie Lies Low, the tender intergenerational drama Juniper and the outrageously funny Nude Tuesday, it’s a stellar line up of films for a huge array of audiences. We’re excited to share these films, and welcome many of these talented artists to Edinburgh this summer - let’s hope they pack some Pineapple Chunks in their suitcases for us - hint, hint!”
Directors Armagan Ballantyne and Matthew Saville will attend the festival with support from Te Tumu Whakaata Taonga New Zealand Film Commission (NZFC) with director Michelle Savill and producer Desray Armstrong who are being supported by the festival to attend.
Running since 1947, the Edinburgh International Film festival connects audiences with innovative and essential storytellers and gives a platform to the best of world cinema. The 75th Edinburgh International Film Festival runs 12 -20 August 2022.
Nude Tuesday was made with funding from the NZFC, Screen Australia, Film Victoria, and the New Zealand Government’s Screen Production Grant and Screen Production Recovery Fund. Madman released the film in New Zealand last month. Cornerstone are selling the ROW.
Whina was made with funding from the NZFC, Ingenious Media, Traus Investments, and Images Sound, Westmark Productions and the New Zealand Government’s Screen Production Grant and Screen Production Recovery Fund. The film is in its fifth week of release in New Zealand, with over $1million at the local box office. Cornerstone are selling ROW.
Juniper was made with funding from the NZFC, Images and Sound and the New Zealand Government’s Screen Production Grant and Screen Production Recovery Fund. Transmission Films released Juniper in New Zealand earlier this year, and the film is releasing theatrically in Australia next month. Celsius have ROW selling rights.
Millie Lies Low was made with funding from the NZFC and the New Zealand Government’s Screen Production Recovery Fund. The film will release theatrically in New Zealand in September by Rialto Distribution. Reason8 have ROW selling rights.