Uli Falkner and Lee Williams enjoying life back in Whanganui
WHEN Lee Williams was interviewed by the Wanganui Chronicle back in 2006, she likened the Whanganui River to a boomerang.
"People come here and must come back," she said.
It was an exciting time for the busy mum who had been working as a costume maker for the film River Queen being shot in Whanganui by director Vincent Ward.
Lee had studied fashion design at Wanganui Polytechnic and seized the opportunity to become part of the film.
Working with designer Barbara Darragh, she hand crafted European and Maori costumes for the film.
It was laborious work but she loved it, even though some of her hard work was destroyed during filming.
"A team of us spent hours hand stitching a wedding dress which ended up being tossed in to a concrete mixer.
"It was the most incredible job. It was hard work, but I feel so blessed to have worked on it."
The experience prepared her well for the years ahead, working on costumes at Weta Workshops in Wellington.
During a break in the filming of River Queen, director Peter Jackson invited Lee to work on his 2005 King Kong movie and it was at Weta that Lee met fellow Whanganui export Uli Falkner.
A foundry pattern maker, Uli came to Whanganui from Germany in 2000 before going to work at Weta's 3D costume department in 2004.
"We were a team of three at the start and we purchased all the equipment," says Uli.
"It was a very exciting experience because there were so many advancements in computer technology at the time."
Uli's future husband Alex Falkner was also on the team and the couple now have six-year-old son Jakob.
Life at Weta was fast-faced paced and stressful but exciting, say Lee and Uli, who often collaborated on costume designs.
"When you designed a costume you would never know if it was going to make it to the screen or not," says Lee.
"The film might not make it to production or the scenes with your costume may be edited out.
"You just had to immerse yourself in the creativity and stay in the moment."
After King Kong came Jackson's The Hobbit film series and for Lee there has been work with the World of Wearable Arts, New Zealand Ballet and theatre productions.
The women said they usually had little knowledge of what was happening beyond the realms of their own departments at Weta.
"I remember talking to taxi drivers who knew more about what was happening with film productions than I did," says Uli.
Uli and Alex made the decision to move from Wellington to Whanganui almost a year ago.
Affordable housing, a slower pace of life and the fact that Uli's mother lives here prompted the move.
They bought a house, enrolled Jakob at St Johns Hill School and both started working at GDM, designing 3D models before Alex was enticed back to Weta to work on a new film.
"He spends the week down there and comes home to spend the weekend with me and Jakob," says Uli.
"It is working out okay at the moment because we know it is for a finite time," she says.
Alex was one of six finalists in Whanganui's first Dragons' Den competition last year.
He pitched a plan on behalf of the Phoenix Collective for a two to three day film symposium that would take participants from initial scripting and collaborating, to concepts and designs, right through to the manufacture of sets, costumes, makeup and props. The judges were impressed but awarded first place to the Fine Arts Whanganui team for their Visual Arts Symposium proposal.
The Visual Arts Symposium Trust (VAST) is now working towards holding the first convention in October and their new co-ordinator is none other than Lee Williams.
Lee has fulfilled her own boomerang prophecy by returning to live in Whanganui last year.
"It was good to come back and spend time with my parents who have both passed away now," she says.
Lee's daughter Ariana and her grandchildren Khovan and Leon live in Whanganui while her son Jharaiz is a Sydney-based actor and film-maker.
"My kids grew up with film and theatre and I think they were more afraid of Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny than trolls and monsters because they saw those things every day," says Lee.
She started 2017 with a hiss and a roar as costume director for Whanganui Opera Week, giving UCOL design student Ali Anderson the opportunity to gain some fast-paced, hands-on experience.
"I learned a lot about how to put on costumes and work with people," said Ali.
"I can be a bit shy, so it was good to be pushed into having to talk to people."
Now Lee says she is fully committed to VAST for the next few months and the trust is settling in to a new home next to Arts@the Centre in Taupo Quay.
The Visual Arts Symposium is scheduled to begin on Friday, October 6 and run until the night of Sunday, October 8.
This planned focus is to provide high-quality learning opportunities to all who have an interest in the visual arts, whether they are established or emerging artists, hobbyists, art collectors or curators.
Dragon's Den applicants were told there was particular interest in events that would occur between March and October, attract visitors from outside the Whanganui district, support Whanganui's reputation in arts, culture and heritage, and utilise its venues and sportsgrounds.
Uli says she is delighted that Lee has also moved back to Whanganui and she believes there is great potential for collaborations between artists.
"There seems to be so much talent around in Whanganui," she says.
"Alex and I would both like to share our ideas and collaborate with other people in Whanganui."
Lee Williams says she loves the fact that people are so accessible in Whanganui and there is such a willingness for co-operation within the arts community.
"You can drive across town in six minutes and you can usually talk to people without having to wait days for an appointment," she says.
She remembers making the boomerang comment back in 2006 and says her return has taken longer than anticipated.
"It's taken a long time but it feels like I'm back at a good time," she says.
The incidents occurred at the same commercial premises on Broadway, Marton.