The Outlook for Someday has named its shortlisted teams and titles for its eighth edition.
Over the next few weeks teams will receive feedback on their submissions, and have time to re-develop their scripts and supporting materials before they re-submit proposals in January. The successful teams will be announced on 31 January.
Documentary teams will receive $15,000 to produce their film, and scripted teams will receive $20,000. All successful teams will receive wraparound talent support including workshops, professional script consultancy, and directing mentors.
This year’s shortlist is drawn from 60 submissions. Former filmmakers selected for the programme, Bala Murali Shingade and Gretchen Hatton, helped draw up the shortlist.
The shortlisted titles and teams are:
Scripted Films
Behind The White Wall (drama)
A Korean immigrant dad, working as a construction painter, mentors a new young worker while simultaneously battling melancholia and guilt as he awaits the arrival of his family.
Writer/Director – Seunghoon Sung [Korean] (he/him)
Producer – Joshua Nicholas Siu [Chinese] (he/him)
Blue Marble (sci-fi/ dark comedy)
A young man thinking about ending his life meets an Alien who wants to learn about Earth, and surprises himself to find he enjoys being a tour guide.
Writer/Director – Madison Fotti-Knowles [Pākehā/NZ European] (she/her)
Producer – Paris Coulson [Pākehā/NZ European] (she/her)
Going (scripted – drama)
Two sisters travel along a rural road in a mobility scooter, towing a coffin to the next goodbye.
Director – Frankie Berge [Pākehā/NZ European] (she/her)
Producer – Ashleigh Roworth [Pākehā/NZ European] (she/her)
Holy Ghost (drama, surrealist, body horror)
A queer relationship falls out of sync as one woman loses touch with what is real and what may or may not be coming to her from the divine.
Writer/Director – Hannah Lynch [Samoan, Fijian, NZ European, Ngāti Porou] (she/her)
Producer – Esaú Mora [Mexican-American] (he/him)
Lemons (indie dramedy)
A young Māori woman is given her estranged birth mother’s ashes and has to figure out what to do with them.
Director – India Fremaux [Te Arawa, Te Rarawa] (she/her)
Writer/Producer – Caitlin Fremaux [Te Arawa, Te Rarawa] (she/her)
Consulting Producer – Angela Cudd [Ngāti Porou, Te-Whānau-Ā-Apanui, Ngātiwai] (she/her)
Punching Shadows (drama)
In a battle between dreams and family, a young immigrant teen fighter defies his Filipino cultural beliefs to pursue his passion for boxing.
Director – Lloyd Lising [Filipino] (he/him)
Producer – Aislin Hook [Pākehā/NZ European] (she/her)
Run Your Mouth (scripted – comedy)
During a run, Ra is pursued by an angry youth who wants to fight. Impressed by the youth’s tenacity, Ra agrees to fight after their run, and then mentors him on running efficiency to tire him out.
Writer/Director – Toi Rankin [Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei] (he/him)
Sexual Deviants (romance/drama)
At the beginning of the next chapter of his life Charlie reluctantly ends up on a date. Lauren seems both lovely and understanding but Charlie still frets about confessing his asexuality.
Writer – Olive Shadbolt [Pākehā/NZ European] (they/them)
Director – Judah Jackson [Pākehā/NZ European] (he/him)
Producer – Bianca Ellis [Pākehā/NZ European] (she/her)
The Glow (dramedy)
A new baby puts a strain on a close female friendship, forcing the two women to figure out how to hold on to their love for each other in the face of life-altering change.
Writer – Isabella McDermott [Pākehā] (she/her)
Director – Harriett Maire [Swiss-Pākehā] (she/her)
Producer – Hayley Becht [Dutch-Pākehā] (she/her)
The Neon Labyrinth (comedy, adventure)
Lost at the night markets, Johnjohn tries to find his parents, while searching he befriends Junior, a child of a family working the stalls who takes him on a fantastical journey to find his loved ones.
Writer/Director – Sean Dioneda Rivera [Filipino, Pakeha] (he/they) and Albert Latailakepa [Samoan, Tongan] (he/him)
Producer – Danny Aumua [Samoan] (he/him)
The Silent Maiden (modernised historical drama)
Lin Moniang, a young mute Chinese girl, dedicates her youth to guiding her father and other fisherman home after each day on the water.
Writer – Adrian Hooke [Pākehā/NZ European] (he/him)
Director – Heidi Watson [Taiwanese-European] (she/her)
Producer – Tessa McGeorge [Pākehā/NZ European] (she/her)
Wilbert Wire (sci fi / family)
A robot art student who is othered by his human teacher and classmates is tasked with creating a painting about love.
Writer/Director – Ricky Townsend [Pākehā/NZ European] (he/him)
Producer – Ella Waswo [Pākehā/NZ European] (she/her)
Co-Producer – Joseph Chamsay [Filipino/Chinese/Spanish] (he/him)
Documentary Films
Detangling The Stigma (documentary)
Through her work in film, 28-year-old driven creative, Jzayla Hughey, is detangling the stigma of afro-textured hair, demonstrating that being natural plays a significant role in Aotearoa’s film industry.
Director – Jzayla Marcya [African-American / Australian] (she/her)
Pasi (documentary)
A day in the life of a Samoan immigrant bus driver as he traverses the streets of Auckland, his home life, his role in his community and to his family, and his general outlook and persona.
Director – Robert Norman [Samoan European] (he/him)
Pyro Pods (documentary)
Following an alarming rise in roadside waste fires in New Zealand, eyewitnesses and experts explain why all of us are to blame, how it’s getting worse, and the urgent actions needed to keep people safe.
Director – Joe Canham [Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Te Hikutū] (he/him)
Producer – Mallory Perigo [Pākehā/NZ European] (she/her)
Taurewarewa (documentary)
An inquisitive approach to bipolar disorder in New Zealand, Taurewarewa gathers the stories of people affected by the disorder; people diagnosed with it, their family and close friends, and health professionals who help manage it.
Director – Libby Witheford-Smith [Kāi Tahu] (she/he)
Producer – Lily Groenhart [Pākehā/NZ European] (she/her)
The Social Ladder (documentary)
Exploring the way social media is changing the landscape and chemistry of our brains and attention spans.
Director – Vanessa Cone [Pākehā/NZ European] (she/her)
Producer – CJ Draper [Pākehā/NZ European] (they/them)
