Matariki Whatarau stars in The Pa Boys.
It's a pretty safe bet that this small and heartfelt local movie is the first in history to list all the extras by name. There they are in the final credits, ordered by location: the Tolaga Bay Inn, the Herekino Tavern, the "motel guitar party" and so on.
It's appropriate
to the wairua of the work, which is gentle, inclusive and very, very Maori. The Pa Boys is the first feature completed under the aegis of Te Paepae Ataata, the funding arm of the Film Commission charged with "celebrating and developing the film voice of tangata whenua".
Watch the trailer for The Pa Boys here:
Director Himiona Grace, who also wrote the script, comes from a noble literary lineage: his mother is novelist Patricia Grace and his wife is playwright Briar Grace-Smith. And if the new film-maker lacks the assurance of a veteran, he has turned in a very creditable debut feature.
