Jeremy Agar ’s review of “The Last Resort” appears elsewhere in this issue. Ed.

On August 31 st 2004, Errol Wright and I shot the first hour and a half of footage for our second feature documentary, The Last Resort. It was an interview with Murray Horton – secretary of the Campaign Against Foreign Control of Aotearoa (CAFCA) - at his home/workplace in Christchurch. We had begun research for the new documentary several months prior to arriving on his doorstep. We had both been on the Foreshore and Seabed Hikoi and Errol had visited Ngai Tamanuhiri and their supporters camped out on the lawn at Parliament, protesting the sale of Young Nick’s Head*. A lot of heat had begun to flare up in the press around issues of foreign ownership, particularly of iconic sites such as Cape Kidnappers** in the Hawkes Bay. It appeared Pakeha New Zealanders were getting upset about a perceived loss of sovereignty, especially in regards to land – a domain usually traversed by tangata whenua. We thought: this is interesting... is a “recolonisation” of Aotearoa occurring and if so, how might this be changing the relationship between Pakeha and Maori – as the already established “coloniser” and “colonised”. What are the parallels and intersections between colonisation, globalisation, privatisation and foreign ownership? * See Watchdog 100, August 2002, “Righto! An Even More ‘Business Friendly’ Government, by Murray Horton, specifically the subsection “Young Nick’s Head Touched The Heart”, which can be read online at http://www.converge.org.nz/watchdog/00/01.htm Ed. ** See Watchdog 108, April 2005, “How The Cape Was Saved”, by Liz Remerswaal, which can be read online at http://www.converge.org.nz/watchdog/08/05.htm Ed.

This was our starting point – the explorations of which led us to encounter a great variance of people and their perspectives, in a great variance of settings: from Stephen Dawe (the former long serving Chief Executive Officer of the former Overseas Investment Commission) at the Reserve Bank offices, to an elderly former owner of a high country station on-sold to Canadian singing superstar Shania Twain, living in a council flat in Gore awaiting a hip replacement. We were also witness to politicians in Parliament arguing the relevance of the Treaty of Waitangi in overseas investment policy – whilst travelling to Mahia to film at an occupation staged in front of a former campground sold for a multi-million dollar subdivision, currently under a Treaty claim. We listened (with our best poker-faces on) to the Business Roundtable’s Roger Kerr extolling the virtues of Telecom and Contact Energy as primarily benefiting New Zealand and New Zealanders. We admired the cut of the suit of New Zealand First’s Leader, Winston Peters (and relegated his interview to the cutting room floor). We attended Resource Consent hearings and Select Committee meetings and election campaign conferences. We helped Maori activist and lawyer Moana Jackson get his washing in when it rained. We joked with Green Party Co-Leader Rod Donald about his sunflower braces and mourned him like we’d never mourned the loss of a political figure before when he passed away three months later. In the end, we made a film which got screened in eight centres around the country, and met many more diverse people and heard many more opinions. The common element in all of these scenarios was the depth of feeling and recognition of the importance of the issues at hand.

Although our documentary dips into a broad range of concerns - for example real estate, environmental sustainability, farming, coastal development, high country tenure review etc. – the notions of sovereignty and self-determination are what is fundamentally at stake. To have the ability to be able to stop a transnational corporation from dumping waste into our air or rivers, to be able to access land we feel is significant to us, to be able to protect food gathering areas that communities rely on, to have recourse to an employer who neglects workplace health and safety, to be able to save for a house instead of having (our already low) wages sucked up by high rents, bank charges, power and phone bills. Even something as seemingly simple and “true-blue Kiwi” as pitching your tent at the beach for a holiday, has been encroached upon. As one of the tangata whenua from Mahia states in our film, when lamenting the experience of Maori under colonisation: “But when the majority of people start having their sense of well-being threatened - like having a holiday… then the pendulum will swing”. Here’s hoping.

Big issues manifest themselves in small ways, and are often laced with an ironic edge. The other day I was taking a train into Wellington from Plimmerton, where I’m currently staying. Being a city-dweller I don’t usually have the pleasure of riding the rail service – although I enjoy it when I do. The train was held up in Tawa, as the much-harangued, yet apologetic attendant explained a goods train had broken down in the tunnel – blocking our way and we’d have to take buses into town. One elderly Pakeha man bemoaned the fact out loud that this was the second time in a week this had happened and we needed to sink more money back into our rail services. I agreed. He then went on to exclaim to anyone that would care to listen that less money spent on benefits/dole bludgers would be a good start – this easy lifestyle led only to a life of idleness and crime “like this fella!”, he said pointing to a photo of a young Maori man being arrested in the newspaper he was clutching. At this point our previously harmonious in-sync belief systems unfortunately diverged. We trundled onto the buses and I was late to a meeting Errol and I had at a cinema in town, re: a possible upcoming season for our film. I had Toll to thank for that.

Dealing With Transnational Sponsors & Foreign Landowners

We were also, as guests of the 2006 (note the absence of contractually required sponsor’s name here) New Zealand International Film Festival, beholden to extend our gratitude to the principal sponsor of this major annual cultural event – the one festival we knew would be our first and most important port of call in getting the film out to audiences. Telecom had the distinction of being the 2004 Roger Award winner, a Christchurch awards evening we had filmed and included in the final cut. Upon submitting the film to the festival we were called in for a conference with the Director himself. His concern was that the scene in question would jeopardise the future of the festival if its major sponsor took issue with the “anti-Telecom” content and as such we should rethink our editorial position. After dealing with the anger and incredulity of finding ourselves in this position (and yet not entirely surprised by it either) we were able to resolve the situation to the satisfaction of both parties without feeling like we had compromised ourselves as documentary makers. Further, we commend the Festival and in particular the Director for going out on a limb to have included our film in the 2006 programme. Their role in supporting up-and-coming independent filmmakers in this country is absolutely invaluable. Not ones to let an exploitative transnational corporation desperate to be seen as a benevolent force in our community come between friends, we went on to have a ball of a time with the festival. Thanks Telecom (two words you will probably never see put together in another Watchdog article again…)!

As we are constantly reminded by politicians, keen to promote global economic dependence – we live in a small country. And it would seem, as the song goes: “It’s a small world after all”. In making “The Last Resort” we were able to experience first hand what it is like to collaborate with our well-heeled guests from o’er the oceans. We had hoped honorary Kiwi Shania Twain would be happy to have her song “Gonna Getcha” included in the soundtrack. With lyrics like: “Don’t wantcha for the weekend/Don’t wantcha for the night/I’m only interested if I can have you for life/I know I sound serious/And baby I am/You’re a fine piece of real estate and I’m gonna get me some land” who could deny the aptness all things considered? Alas, Shania and her husband/manager “Mutt” Lange refused us outright even paid usage. Happily we opted for Daniel Gannaway’s “Selling Off The Country” – a song written by an expat living in the US, after hearing about the sales of Young Nick’s Head and Cape Kidnappers. Not all interactions were bad however. We were relieved there was no great hitch in clearing copyright with the foreign-owned national newspapers for the use of certain articles in the edit. In addition, we simply must extend our compliments to Sky City, in whose excellent cinema our film premiered in Auckland. They were obviously not phased by their logo featuring in the animated Roger Award intro sequence * – or (as is more likely to be the case) were not aware they were making a cameo. Either way – nice theatre, good sound, quality projector. It has to be said however, that gambling is not in the community’s overall interest. Kids – stay away from casinos. * Sky City Entertainment Group was a finalist in the 2002 Roger Award. Ed.

In lugging ourselves around the country, only to intrude on good citizens’ private residences or places of work – one indicator, if spotted, would be a favourable omen… that of Watchdog on a coffee table, bench or desk. We knew, upon the revelation of this sign that the pending interview would be with an “enlightened one” and we could proceed without reservation. Thanks to all those readers and subscribers who came along to the festival screenings of “The Last Resort”. For those who didn't make it - keep an eye out for return screenings at a theatre near you. Please check our Website for further information. We are also currently nearing completion of a DVD version that will be available for purchase by emailing us at the address below. Thanks also to those involved in the making of the film – CAFCAns especially. We found the amount of dedicated research coming from this collective resource was indispensable when setting out to unearth what was afoot in our country. Keep supporting CAFCA, keep reading Watchdog and keep fighting the good fight! Kia kaha koutou!

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