Rotorua Daily Post
  • Rotorua Daily Post home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Residential property listings
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Rural
  • Sport

Locations

  • Tauranga
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales

Weather

  • Rotorua
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Rotorua Daily Post

Expect to see some Rotorua faces and backgrounds in new movie

Katee Shanks
Katee Shanks
Multimedia journalist·Rotorua Daily Post·
19 May, 2019 09:49 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article
Filmmaker and producer Ainsley Gardiner. Photo / File

Filmmaker and producer Ainsley Gardiner. Photo / File

Future stars of the big screen may have been discovered this week in Rotorua.

Staff from The Casting Company, the same team that found actors for the movie Boy, have been in Rotorua schools observing students in readiness for the September/October filming of a movie called Cousins.

Cousins will be shot in Rotorua and Wellington so it made sense to find people to fill the roles from those areas, according to producer and director Ainsley Gardiner.

For Gardiner, who whakapapas to Ngāti Pikiao and Ngāti Awa, Cousins is a film she is honoured to be a part of.

Some 15 years ago New Zealand filmmaker Merata Mita, who was born in Maketū, planned to make the film based on a novel by award-winning New Zealand author Patricia Grace. But, for whatever reason, Mita was unable to produce the movie before her untimely death in 2010.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Merata was my mentor," Gardiner said. "She had a significant influence in my journey with film, so to be able to pick up Cousins where she left it and continue her legacy, is an honour."

Gardiner has been a writer, director and producer in a number of movies that have become New Zealand favourites, including Two Cars, One Night – the first of several films she made with Taika Waititi – Tama Tū, Mokopuna, Eagle vs Shark, Boy, The Pā Boys, Waru and The Breaker Upperers.

Cousins tells the story of three cousins, Mata, who was raised by a cruel guardian who keeps her from her family; Makareta, the reluctant princess of her tribe; and Missy, who is overlooked but in the end is the glue that holds them together.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Gardiner is co-directing the movie with Briar Grace-Smith (Patricia Grace's daughter-in-law) who has written a new screenplay based on the book.

"That the story is about strong Māori women and the cast largely Māori females, has been another of the inspirations behind wanting to make this film," Gardiner said

"And, to be able to film part of it in Rotorua is awesome. For me there is a personal connection, it is my hapū and my iwi which makes it more special."

Since moving back to Whakatāne, Gardiner has always said she wanted to make films closer to where she lives as opposed to having to travel.

Discover more

Gardiner says honour came out of left field

07 Jun 09:08 PM
New Zealand

Merata to launch indigenous film festival

11 Oct 10:00 PM
Premium

Cliff Curtis reveals who ignited his passion for storytelling

08 May 03:10 PM

Rotorua says no to bullying on Pink Shirt Day

17 May 05:00 AM

"It makes sense to me. Like with Taika and his connection to the East Coast. We cast from the East Coast and filmed in the East Coast – which is why we are looking for actors from Rotorua for Cousins."

Local students were observed in their classrooms by the casting crew and, if close to a character within the movie, would be recalled for an audition.

Save
    Share this article

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Rotorua Daily Post
|Updated

The man driving 340km a day so kids get fed

17 Oct 05:17 PM
Premium
Rotorua Daily Post

Woman 'stunned' by diagnosis after volunteering for a bone scan at work

17 Oct 05:00 PM
Rotorua Daily Post

Otago book spot in NPC final

17 Oct 09:34 AM

Sponsored

Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable

22 Sep 01:23 AM
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

The man driving 340km a day so kids get fed
Rotorua Daily Post
|Updated

The man driving 340km a day so kids get fed

The Te Puke father drives more than 340km daily through the Tauranga region.

17 Oct 05:17 PM
Premium
Premium
Woman 'stunned' by diagnosis after volunteering for a bone scan at work
Rotorua Daily Post

Woman 'stunned' by diagnosis after volunteering for a bone scan at work

17 Oct 05:00 PM
Otago book spot in NPC final
Rotorua Daily Post

Otago book spot in NPC final

17 Oct 09:34 AM


Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable
Sponsored

Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable

22 Sep 01:23 AM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Rotorua Daily Post e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Rotorua Daily Post
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP