International recognition for young filmmaker Malachi Steel

Malachi Steel, middle, Jack Turner left, Daisy Cooper right have found international success.

Young Bay of Plenty film-maker Malachi Steel took out third place at the global awards for the International Youth Silent Film Festival in Hollywood Cinema, Portland, Oregon, this month.

Malachi’s film Mum’s Star was awarded the inaugural Kōhungahunga – Fledging Filmmaker Award in the Bay of Plenty IYSFF awards late last year and he, with 2023 IYSFF NZ first-place winning film Shelf Life, by Te Herenga Waka and second-place film HER by Tauranga Girls’ College students, represented Aotearoa at the global awards.

Malachi is the son of filmmakers Anton and Kylie Steel (Taking Back our Beach and The Z-Nail Gang and founders of Film Bay of Plenty) and after this international success looks to be following in his family’s footsteps.

Mum’s Star is a comedic story of a young boy who tries to impress his mother, but never quite nails it.

Malachi, from Pikowai, produced his film with a crew of friends from his home-schooling community, The Red Barn in Pongakawa, as part of their afternoon electives.

After his parents took them through the essentials of filmmaking, from script writing to camera and editing, Malachi and his friends got to work. Malachi’s friend Jack Turner stars as the young boy; Jack’s mother, Krystal Turner, plays herself, while Harry Turner was the director of photography and Daisy Cooper managed the art department.

Jack Turner plays a young boy desparate to please his mother in Mum's Star.

Malachi says the hardest part was “writing the script and doing all the detail stuff”.

The highlight of making the film “was putting melting butter on Jack’s head, because it was quite creative, we had to make it look realistic and we knew it would make people laugh”.

The news of the third placing was unexpected.

“I was blown away. We all couldn’t believe it when we heard ‘cause there was, like, so many other people from all over the world, way older than us.

“It was really cool watching the livestream and hearing people laughing at all the funny moments. It would have been cool to be there.”

Malachi and the Red Barn Home School’s next project is a documentary about the World Vision challenge they have set themselves on the weekend of June 21–23.

“Jack and me are hugging a tree for 40 hours to raise awareness of deforestation. So we’re going to film that and make a doco about it,” says Malachi.

Watch Mum’s Star at https://vimeo.com/antonsteel/mumsstar