The ‘Show Me Shorts Film Festival’ kicks off around the country on the 10th October at the Hollywood Theatre in Auckland.
Among the films showcasing is ‘Payback’ written and directed by Tongan actor and director, Mia Blake.
Well-known for her role in Toa Fraser’s film ‘No 2’ and most recently in the TVNZ series ‘After The Party’, Blake jumped at the chance to write and direct her own short film.
The story is about a palagi welfare consultant’s prejudicial behaviour and a group of unlikely heroes who must decide whether they turn a blind eye – or stand up for what is right.
For Blake, writing a script that connected to the young actors was key as the cast were graduates from Toi Whakaari, the NZ Drama School in Wellington.
“So, I had to create a film for a screenplay. (I’ve) never written a screenplay. What was I going through at that age? And the things I was going through. Trying to survive, trying to get money on the ‘Artist Benefit,” she says.
Once she got the idea for the screenplay, Blake had to dig deep, choosing to write about the discrimination and racism that she had experienced herself as a young student.
“This case manager basically told me there’s no ‘artists bBenefit’. You’re on the dole like everybody else.
“She just felt that this whole thing around the artist thing was just a namby-pamby thing that wasn’t justified. And she let me know about it and it was really degrading.” Recalls Blake
The positive side was being able to work with up-and-coming actors.
“I was so pleased with my cast; such beautiful actors and I was really happy that, you know, Māori, Samoan, Tongan, such a good mix of students in there as well,” says Blake.
Writing and directing a short film has been a learning experience, both confronting and inspiring.
“It was such an amazing experience. Everything that you think was a good idea, suddenly you are worried that it was a terrible idea. It puts your ego to the test and it was just a little short film,” she says.
“You know, like, imagine doing a feature and having that length of film to deal with. For me that was such a valuable thing to go through and I still want to keep doing it.”
