A new film directed by Josephine Stewart-Te Whiu, We Were Dangerous, will have its world premiere in Austin, Texas at the South by Southwest Film Festival (SXSW).
Stewart-Te Whiu, of Ngāpuhi and Te Rarawa, was one of nine Māori filmmakers on Waru in 2017. Executive producers of We Were Dangerous include Taika Waititi, Carthew Neal, Bill Way, Elliott Whitton and Emily Gotto. It was written by Maddie Dai, with additional writing by Stewart-Te Whiu.
The film tells the fictional story of three friends Nellie, Lou and Daisy who attend an institution for delinquent girls on an isolated island. The trio rail against the system, finding strength in their friendship. But this is challenged when the school’s matron divides them.
Stewart-Te Whiu says it is a huge privilege to premiere We Were Dangerous at SXSW, an international festival that celebrates unique voices and energetic cinema.
“Some of my favourite films have premiered at [SXSW] so to follow in their path with our story that celebrates female sisterhood is a dream come true.”
The character Nellie is played by Erana James, of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei and Waikato Tainui, who was most recently seen in Hamish Bennett and Paul Middleditch’s feature film Uproar, alongside Minnie Driver, Rhys Darby, Julian Dennison and James Rolleston.
Lou is played by Nathalie Morris, a graduate of New Zealand’s leading drama school, Toi Whakaari. She stars as Oly in Stan series Bump, opposite Claudia Karvan and Angus Sampson.
Daisey is played by 13-year-old Manaia Hall in her first debut acting role. Hall, of Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Manawa and Ngāti Pūkenga, studies at Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngāti Kahungunu o Te Wairoa.
The school’s matron is played by Rima Te Wiata, of Ngāti Raukawa. Her acting career spans over four decades in theatre, film and television. In 2017, she was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to film and television.
In 2018, Stewart-Te Whiu was awarded the Māori Screen Excellence Award from the NZ Film Commission alongside her fellow Waru filmmakers. Her short film Ani (2019) premiered at the Berlinale Film Festival and went on to screen at many international festivals, including Toronto and ImagiNATIVE before being picked up by Searchlight Pictures Shorts. Her latest short When We Were Kids (2020) won Best Short at the New Zealand International Film Festival.
But she is most looking forward to the premiere of We Were Dangerous.
“I can’t wait to share what we have made with the world,” she said.
We Were Dangerous will premiere at SXSW in March 2024 and will be distributed in New Zealand by Madman and Piki Films and by Madman in Australia.