New Zealand National Film Unit

Examines the practical philosophy, the achievements and frustrations of one of New Zealand's most lively and innovative architects, Ian Athfield. The film provides a portrait of the architect and his work both in New Zealand and his project to design housing for 140,000 squatters from the Tondo area of Manila in the Philippines, for which Athfield won an international competition in 1975.

A primer on proper phone manners produced for the New Zealand Post Office.

Expat Kiwi Rewi Alley became one of the best known foreigners in 20th Century China and advocate for the Communist Revolution. When China was under siege from Japan in the late 1930s, Alley instigated an industrial co-op movement he termed ‘gung ho' (work together). Its success led to the phrase entering the global idiom. For this documentary a Geoff Steven-led crew travelled 15,000km in China in 1979, filming Alley as he gave his account of an engrossing, complex life story. Co-writer Geoff Chapple later wrote a biography of Alley.

The same night as a girl is slain in the woods, the teenagers Sam and Les are robbed of all of their hard earned hens. In the quest for their hens they cross the murderer's path.

This 1981 NFU film is a tour of the contemporary world of Aotearoa’s tangata whenua. It won headlines over claims that its portrayal of Māori had been sanitised for overseas viewers. Debate and a recut ensued. Writer Witi Ihimaera felt that mentions of contentious issues (Bastion Point, the land march) in his original script were ignored or elided in the final film, and withdrew from the project. He later told journalists that the controversy showed that educated members of minority groups were no longer prepared to let the majority interpret the minority view.

A documentary about the New Zealand theatre troupe "Red Mole".

The short tells the story of a drunkard going through alcohol withdrawal, as personified by the Devil. Director Bob Stenhouse takes what could be a dark subject and makes it a funny madcap romp.

A visual essay on contemporary Kiwi architecture.

On Christmas Eve, a nameless little girl reads 'The Monster's Christmas' storybook to her teddy bear, as something sneaks around in the trees outside her window. She hears a noise in the other room, and thinking that it's Father Christmas, she goes to investigate. She finds one of the monsters, who has come seeking help to defeat an evil witch that has stolen all the monsters' voices.

Account of the royal tour of New Zealand taken by the newly crowned Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh. Includes film of various visits and ceremonies attended during the state visit.

An entertaining look at life in Wellington, New Zealand in the 1960s, giving a colourful impression of Wellington city: hills, winding streets, busy people and strong winds.

Documentary about big game fishing in New Zealand.

Set in post-war (1949) rural New Zealand, this film traces the efforts of two con men to run a betting scam in a small town (Tainuea) already rife with illegal gambling corruption, and eccentricity.

A documentary following the attempt by three young people to be the first windsurfers to cross Cook Strait.

Shot for an Australian Travel Agents Seminar, this short film seeks to portray 1969 New Zealand as a hip and happening place. The tourism clichés of a scenic wonderland remain, but the film attempts to present a more sophisticated NZ to entice jet-set Aussies east. After all, we "got rid of six o'clock closing ages ago." To complement the Anzac staples of sport, beer and gambling there are mountains and Māori. Nightclubs offer show bands and strippers for "relaxation" after strenuous days of sightseeing. C’mon is a fascinating snapshot of a nation in transition.

The film 'Canterbury is One Hundred' was produced by the National Film Unit in 1950 to celebrate the region's centennial. Written and directed by Oxley Hughan, it emphasises the bucolic agricultural productivity of the Canterbury region, particularly through the lambing and wheat-growing industries. Life in Canterbury's cities is presented as people 'taking pleasure in their neat gardens and comfortable wooden houses', in contrast to the rustic huts built by the early settlers a century earlier. The film is also a poignant tribute to Christchurch's celebrated Neo-Gothic architecture, much of which was destroyed following the February 2011 earthquake.

This impressionistic, late 1960s survey traces Auckland from volcanic origins to a population of half a million people. Produced by the National Film Unit, it finds a city of "design and disorder" growing steadily but secure in its own skin as its populace basks in the summer sun. A wry, at times bemused, Hugh Macdonald script and an often frenetic, jazzy soundtrack accompany time honoured Queen City images: beaches and yachting, parks and bustling city streets, and an unpredictable climate given to humidity and sudden downpours. Awards: 1970 Edinburgh Film Festival - Certificate of Merit 1968 Pacific Asia Travel Association Conference (Taiwan) - Third Prize 1967 Venice Film Festival - Lion of St Mark Plaque 1967 Tourfilm Festival (Czechoslovakia) - Tourism Film Prize

An educational short made by the New Zealand National Film Unit for the National Mountain Safety Council to promote awareness of bush safety.

Documentary following an attempt to find, net, and train a bottlenose dolphin for Napier marine mammal park Marineland.

An award-winning short exploring man-made impacts on New Zealand’s water cycle.