Boyd’s Auto Barn converts room into cinema to tell Whanganui River stories

Friends of the Whanganui River treasurer Graeme Moffatt in his makeshift cinema at Boyd's Auto Barn. Photo / Fin Ocheduszko Brown

Boyd’s Auto Barn has temporarily opened its doors to the Friends of the Whanganui River to operate a cinema.

Friends of the Whanganui River is a non-profit organisation that aims to represent and promote the Whanganui River.

Treasurer Graeme Moffatt, with the help of others, has been producing documentaries about the river’s history for many years.

A quick conversation with Boyd’s Auto Barn owner Hinemoa Ransom-Boyd resulted in the decision to create a DIY cinema to display the films in the building’s lounge.

Boyd’s Auto Barn, built in 2005, was operated by the late Ed Boyd and his wife Hinemoa Ransom-Boyd.

It was used as a vintage automobile museum, displaying planes, trains, cars and memorabilia until Ed died in 2019.

Since then, Ransom-Boyd has continued to operate the museum but has kept only the cars. She has sold or donated the planes, trains and some other memorabilia.

Moffatt had known the Boyds for some years. During 2024’s Whanganui Vintage Weekend, Moffatt and Ransom-Boyd were talking about Ed when the idea to create a cinema arose.

“I said, ‘We should tell a story about him on film but there’s no point putting it on a large screen TV set because some people in New Zealand don’t watch things that are above three minutes at the most - you can’t tell that story about a person’s life in three minutes',” Moffatt said.

“The only way to make people watch it is to build a cinema where they have to sit down and can’t get out.”

The temporary cinema in Boyd's Auto Barn holds up to 16 people and showcases local films every fortnight. Phot / Fin Ocheduszko Brown

Moffatt suggested using the lounge that rarely got attention; Ransom-Boyd agreed it was a good idea.

“I said that I’d love to have it used,” Ransom-Boyd said.

“As people would go through the museum, I’d watch them and they wouldn’t go through to the lounge. I thought, ‘What would it take to get people in there?’.”

The cinema seats up to 16 people and the fortnightly screenings are going well.

Moffatt estimated he had 17 hours of footage on the Whanganui River and surrounding areas.

He was planning for another film, this one on the post-World War I events in Mangapurua Valley.

Ransom-Boyd was happy to provide the space for the organisation.

“I was really happy to have the Friends of the Whanganui River. All my pictures are all Whanganui-themed and it suited,” she said.

“He has got some cool skills and it’s wonderful to see those films shown and spread around.”

Ransom-Boyd was always happy to help people who came to her with ideas.

“We’ve always been very supportive of what the community want to do and, generally, the answer is yes when people ask,” she said.

The barn will host another community group soon, meaning the cinema is a temporary set-up and will need to move out.

Moffatt and Ransom-Boyd are working to find a more permanent location to display the films.

Movie screenings occur fortnightly on Saturdays and must be booked via the Friends of the Whanganui River website.