Hitchcock & Jackson combine for next Big NZ Movie

Hitchcock & Jackson combine for next Big NZ Movie

By Fiona Jackson
Tuesday October 23

Auckland, NZ - The NZ movie Penny Black is in its last week of production, with the ‘big photo-shoot scene’ as the last day of shooting on the 26th of October in Auckland. The cast and crew began filming in July with a two-week road trip from Auckland down to Wellington, shooting in Huntly, Hamilton, Taupo, Napier along the way and have filmed in the Auckland and Waikato areas every second weekend since.

The story

This ‘You aren’t what you own’ movie is an inspiring view of the journey of two siblings making their way though the diverse land of New Zealand and the challenges they face. Top model Penny Black and her Superhero sister set off from Auckland heading for Wellington to attempt to secure her lucrative modeling contract, but along the way they meet a charismatic nomad, Guy, who introduces them to a way of living that leaves no global footprint and they decide to band together to expose secrets about the biggest corporation on the planet. Penny Black is a movie about new experiences, pushing boundaries, sorting priorities, questioning herd mentality, being mindful of our impact on the environment, and celebrating people’s differences

The Characters

• Penny Black (played by Astra McLaren) is a supermodel who doesn’t want anything to come between her and fame and fortune, but learns there are other much more important things in life. Coming from a highly consumerist lifestyle Penny is surprised by some of the unconventional methods of reusing, refusing and recycling that she is introduced to.
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• Guy (Anton Tennet), the ultimate and wholly idealistic environmentalist only consumes products that would otherwise be discarded. His mission Is to travel the country educating people in his unique manner about living on the planet. Though Guy’s beliefs may lead him to gently bend the law he is guided by the underlying principle of ‘do no harm unto others’.
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• Alex (Toni Garson) is Penny’s sister; with a character that highlights the hero in all of us, Alex always wears a costume from her favorite 70s superhero, Lapwing. She’s fun, and funny, with a penchant for communicating using the phrases and lines from the movie Lapwing.
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Penny Black is self-funded, with additional sponsorship from local companies and public support through the crowdfunding site Pledgeme.co.nz. Crowdfunding is a new way to fund creative projects by inviting anyone to pledge an amount as small as $5 in exchange for rewards. The rewards for pledging to Penny Black ranged from a digital download of Joe’s latest short film for $5, to the major reward of being named Penny Black’s executive producer at $1000, which was chosen by a couple of American supporters.

Director Joe Hitchcock has worked on internationally acclaimed films such as Avatar and Yogi Bear. He was Director of Photography on several local feature films, and has received international awards for his short films. This is his directorial debut.

Producer Fiona Jackson has 10 years experience in the Hollywood film industry and on her return to New Zealand studied the film industry at Waikato University. Penny Black is the first feature film she has produced.

“We’ve enjoyed having so many people involved with the making of Penny Black. Behind the scenes of a film production is where the real movie magic happens,” says producer, Fiona Jackson. “This is why we chose to shoot in many locations between Auckland and Wellington, not just for the beauty of the North Island, but to incorporate the diversity of its towns, landscapes, and people.”

"Making a quality feature film is never cheap, but what we don't have in the budget we’ve tried to make up for with help from our support network. We wouldn’t have been able to make the film properly without support from friends, family, strangers and superheroes." says director, Joe Hitchcock.
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