Local flavour at international festival

For people wanting to see some of the latest cinematic creations from the New Zealand film industry, head to Rialto Cinema in downtown Tauranga.
Rialto Cinema will host the New Zealand International Film Festival, which kicks off tonight. The festival will end in Tauranga on Wednesday.
The festival will include films from all over the world but this year has a strong focus on New Zealand content.
It will screen five local films as well as Homegrown - a collaboration of the best New Zealand short films. Six short films are included in the 78-minute screening of Homegrown.
Clayton Morgan, cinema manager of Tauranga Rialto Cinema, said there were a number of special circumstances at this year's festival.
Mr Morgan said the film-makers of the New Zealand feature films The Insatiable Moon and The Hopes & Dreams of Gazza Snell would be present at the screening. A question and answer section was also lined up for the audience.
"This is a first for us, it's absolutely wonderful," Mr Morgan said.
"This will allow people to get a real feel for the film-making process and the opportunity for them to ask the film-makers about the film."
In previous years, New Zealand content had been small but this year festival organisers had really tried to give New Zealand a voice.
Mr Morgan said the festival director had travelled around the country and overseas and personally picked the films included in the festival.
"With the inclusion of more local films, it shows New Zealand film-makers are producing high-quality work that can be compared to the work of international artists."
Last year, only one New Zealand feature film and the Homegrown series was shown. This year there are five feature films as well as the Homegrown series.
A variety of films are included in the festival - documentaries, fictional films and old films that have been remastered. Mr Morgan said some of these films would return to the cinema but for the most part, the festival would be the only time to see them.
"Most will be one-off screenings and I would hate to gamble on potentially missing out," Mr Morgan said.
He said the remastered films, such as the 1948 British classic The Red Shoes, was one of the only times the film had been played since its original release. The cinema had to get new equipment to play the old format.
"This is the first time people will see these films in their full glory," Mr Morgan said.
The Tauranga festival would include 69 screenings of 37 films.
Mr Morgan said the New Zealand International Film Festival was an important part of Tauranga's cultural calendar and people looked forward to it each year.
He said ticket sales were up 10 per cent compared with the last year and strongly recommended booking.
Film trailers are available to to view on the cinema website. Reservations can be made by phoning 577 0445 or book online at www.rialtotauranga.co.nz