An Auckland restaurateur has joined forces with an incredibly strange film buff to bring local short films to a hungry audience.
Sale St Shorts is billed as a celebration of the New Zealand short film 1980 to 2010.
Over 40 films from directors including Taika Waititi, Jane Campion, Harry Sinclair, and Jason Stutter will be shown on a large outdoor screen at Sale St Bar.
"I organised this for selfish reasons," says Ant Timpson, the man behind the 48HOURS Furious Filmmaking Competition and the Incredibly Strange programme of the New Zealand International Film Festival.
"I like the shorts, like the film makers, but most of all I like eating good rib eye and drinking beer while watching films with friends under the night sky."
Film guru Timpson teamed up with restaurant guru-about-town, Luke Dallow to make the idea happen.
While the evenings will be a three decade catch-up for short film fans, closing night will show a selection of submissions from anyone who made a film in the past 12 months.
This Tuesday includes films such as Taika Waititi's Slade In Full (2005), Jason Stutter's Careful With That Powertool (2009), The Lounge Bar (1988) by Don McGlashan and Harry Sinclair, and Alison Maclean's Kitchen Sink (1989).
That last film alone seems reason enough to go - it has screened more than any other New Zealand short, and was still being shown in festivals as late as 2003.
Starring Theresa Healey, Kitchen Sink's crew features some of the industry's most successful players, such as Grant Major (Lord Of The Rings), Trevor Haysom (In My Father's Den), Stuart Dryburgh (Bridget Jones's Diary), David Coulson (Whale Rider), Bridget Ikin (An Angel At My Table) and music by The Headless Chickens.
"Kitchen Sink was the first film I ever worked on and even at that time I thought it was very cool," says Timpson, whos description of his duties gives a good idea of what to expect from the film.
"I assisted on the all the special effects - foetus, giant skin, hair - for a genius called Andrew Turney who deserves a tonne of credit for his work on that film.
"So to start this series with what is regarded as New Zealand's best short is fitting in many ways."
LOWDOWN
What: Sale St Shorts, Celebrating NZ short films 1980-2010
Where: Sale St Bar, 7 Sale St, Auckland City
When: Tuesdays from February 15th to March 8th, 7pm (show 8.30pm to 10.15pm) Tuesday February 15th Sold Out
Tickets: $10 (including one tap beer/house wine) from iTickets.
Also: March 8th is user submission night, send a DVD (which won't be returned) of a short film you made in the last 12 months, along with a blurb, to Sale St Shorts, Box 5653, Wellesley Street, Auckland.
Programme - Tuesday February 15th:
Kitchen Sink (1989) Director: Alison Maclean
Careful with that Power Tool (2009) Director: Jason Stutter
Poppy (2009) Director: James Cunningham
Brown Peril; The Tim Porch Story (2006) Directors: The Downlow Concept
Valley of The Stereos (1992) Director: George Port
Cow (2001) Director: Michael Bennett
Going Down (1996) Director: Simon Mark-Brown
The Lounge Bar (1988) Directors: Don McGlashan and Harry Sinclair
Slade in Full (2005) Director: Taika Waititi
