A two-man animation team from Te Whanganui-a-Tara / Wellington took out this year’s Vista Foundation 48Hours filmmaking competition. Grounded by Positive Barry, comprised of Chris Callus and Adam Reynolds, tells the simple and sweet story of a ladybug struggling to fly, and the spider who helps it out.
“On the surface it’s a wholesome story featuring an adorable ladybug but underneath it’s about the importance of emotional support,” Callus states.
We’ve both felt like the ladybug and the spider at different times,” Reynolds adds. “The film was inspired by our discoveries on how best to support each other in a moment of need, and often that can simply just mean being there for one another.”
Scoring themselves the coveted Grand National Champion APEE, Positive Barry won themselves an exclusive pitch opportunity for the 48Hours Level Up Grant ($25,000) with Te Tumu Whakaata Taonga / New Zealand Film Commission as well as a cash prize from WingNut Films ($20,000), post production services from Park Road Post Production (worth $20,000), gear hire from Portsmouth Film Equipment Rental (worth $15,000) and x1 year Digital Pigeon Freelance subscription (valued at A$456).
Callus says, “we’re excited to expand our team and make another animation with the amazing prizes we’ve received, watch this space!”
Two veteran teams came joint runners-up. Spoiler Alert, by Ōtautahi / Christchurch team Rabid Aunty Jean, centres on a bookworm who takes a radical form of revenge against a random stranger who blurts out the ending to a novel he almost finished. The film also won Best Director and the Viva La Dirt League Best Comedy awards.
Maybe Daddy, by Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland team Jovial Entertainment, is a shock reunion comedy about a woman at a speed-dating event, her ten-year-old son she had to bring along, and an old flame who connects some horrifying dots. The film also won Best Script.
Kalyani Nagarajan, star of iTROLL by Permanently Confused (ALK), scored Best Performer as a cyborg cyber-bully while one-man stop-motion band Awkward Animations (ALK) won Best Solo/Duo Team (chosen by comp creator Ant Timpson) for heartfelt piece MOTHER.
Taking out the Dame Gaylene Preston and WIFT Outstanding Female / Gender Diverse Filmmaker for a second time, Pastafarian Productions (Across Aotearoa) also scored the Wētā FX Best Animation award for slatter musical rom-com Morgan’s Organs.
Supported by Rubber Monkey in partnership with SONY, Atomos, and SHURE, the award for Best Cinematography went to Midnight Sunburn (AA) for pavlova western Every Last Bastard. Another how-did-they-do-that-in-a-single-weekend film, fast-paced lo-fi sci-fi Singularity by Felix & Luke’s Excellent Team (CHCH), took home Best Production Design.
More technical awards went to Angle3 Pictures (AKL) for Once Upon a Time, There Was You (Best Original Score/Song), Videoshop (WGT) for Ritual (Best Sound Design – Supported by Rubber Monkey in partnership with Deity) and An Evening With (CHCH) for I MetaMan (Best Editing).
Rounding out the rest of the award-winners are teams 18th Circle (AKL) taking out Best Disqualified Film for Respect for the Dead, Anxious Tummy (AKL) winning the Incredibly Strange Award for Two Minutes, One Cup, and Dennistribe (CHCH) scoring Best School Team for Misplaced Death.
But it’s not all about the winners. The Grand Finals night honoured all of the national nominees with a lush screening at The Embassy with a packed crowd. This included one of my personal favourites, The Shroud by Jake the Sound Guy (AKL), which adapted a Brothers Grimm tale in a surreal, haunting, boldly realised manner.
Other nominees included stoner comedy Toast by Mayodaze, meta heist flick The Hat-Trick by Great Lake Film Society (AA), found-footage cringe comedy Baby Girl by Pixel Pixies, sweet little fantasy adventure The Secret Garden by The Flamily and Sir Peter Jackson Wildcards The True Story of Billy the Horse by PlanetFoxFilms and Party Puffers by Glowtime.
