The first airman awarded the Victoria Cross was of Maori descent. His story inspired a local documentary, timed for release on Anzac Day, writes Jacqueline Smith.
When Julian Arahanga heard the story of a Maori pilot who won the first Victoria Cross for flying in World War I, he thought it seemed a bit far-fetched.
William Rhodes-Moorhouse, of Maori lineage, was born into an affluent family in England. Already a daredevil on early motorcycles and cars, he became a celebrated pilot as a civilian before joining the Royal Flying Corps at the advent of World War I.
He was the first airman to win the Victoria Cross, awarded posthumously in 1915 after one of the first bombing missions of aerial warfare. Having bombed a rail yard through which the Germans were shipping mustard gas to the front, Rhodes-Moorhouse nursed his plane through anti-aircraft fire back to base, only to die after landing.
He did not learn of his Maori heritage until he came to New Zealand for a visit before the war.
It was later revealed that his mother was the product of a rich Wellington settler, William Barnard Rhodes, and Ngati Ruanui woman Otahui.
She had been sent to England where she inherited her father's wealth and this is where Rhodes-Moorhouse was born.
He married, and his one and only son went on to honour his father by flying in World War II, only to be killed in 1940. The woeful, and rather bizarre tale inspired fledgling director Arahanga, who, as an actor is best known for his roles in Once Were Warriors and The Matrix. He trawled through Wellington's archives, then tracked down Rhodes-Moorhouse's British descendants for the material he needed to resurrect the story.
Outrageous Fortune star Tammy Davis, who is Arahanga's half-brother, was cast as the hero and Peter Jackson's vintage aircraft company provided the authentic props.
Making a war film with a sad ending satisfied Arahanga's interest in war and also his disdain for it.
"Wars are tragic events that in a lot of ways could have been averted, and Rhodes-Moorhouse's is a tragic story.
"He will be remembered forever but in his story there is no happy ending, his wife never remarried and his son died," Arahanga says.
As a child, it wasn't so much historical documentaries that sparked Arahanga's curiosity for all things war-related than the fact that his cousins lived right next to the Army base in Waiouru.
"OSH probably wouldn't be that into it these days but my cousin's dad was in the Army, and his dad was a tanky, and would pick us up and we would go for a ride for the whole day," he recalls.
Those experiences are perhaps why he chose to recreate many of the dramatic moments of Rhodes-Moorhouse's life using real planes, authentic costumes and actors like Davis and Loren Horsley, best known for her role on Eagle vs Shark.
Arahanga says he laboured over the recreated scenes to keep his interpretations as historically accurate as possible, but he admits it is difficult to avoid speculation when you are reliant on hearsay.
"There's nobody alive these days who can say exactly what happened," he says.
Fortunately, Rhodes-Moorhouse's wife had written a book that recorded her husband's exploits, the birth of their son and the untimely deaths of both.
Arahanga was also put in touch with William Cavendish, a great-great-nephew of Rhodes-Moorhouse, who was able to share the old letters and photographs he had inherited.
Jackson's company, Vintage Aviator, was instrumental in maintaining historical accuracy, as it provided a beautiful, working replica of the BE2 Bleriot Experimental aircraft - the exact model Rhodes-Moorhouse flew on his VC mission.
Arahanga pushed his deadline back two years, from 2009 to this Monday April 25 as he waited for the plane to be built, knowing it would greatly boost the production values if he could include it.
According to Jackson's spokesperson, he said it was a pleasure to be able to assist the project with some genuine aircraft, as part of his firm interest in all things World War I.
For Davis, playing a fighter pilot was a dream come true, even if he wasn't allowed to fly the biplane for the shoot.
"When I was at school, when my teacher asked me what I wanted to be I said a pilot. I've always loved flying. Every now and then I hop on an Air New Zealand plane and the pilots ask me to come up the front with them. It's awesome.
"And when I was living in Wellington, my girlfriend and I bought a house next to the airport and I just used to watch the planes take off and land all day. I just love aviation.
"I should go and get my pilot's licence shouldn't I?" he enthuses.
Davis says one of the perks of filming at Hood Aerodrome near Masterton where the Bleriot was based was going for a spin in a Tiger Moth with one of the pilots one day after filming.
"He said, when I wiggle the joystick you will be flying, so he did, and sure enough I was flying the plane. Oh my goodness. It was like flying a coke can really."
Davis was in the middle of filming Outrageous Fortune when Dancing In the Sky was filmed so was unable to cut the shaggy hairstyle he needed to play Munter for the role.
Instead, the stylists laboured over pinning up his hair into a style more reflective of the period.
Davis still marvels at the costumes he wore, many of which were authentic uniforms from the early 1900s.
"There was such wonderful workmanship, they don't make them like that anymore."
Arahanga hopes the film engages those who have not been brought up on their family members' war stories, and fuels their appetite for more.
"I've always said that in a one-hour documentary all you can do really is give people a little taste," he says.
LOWDOWN
What: Dancing in The Sky, an Anzac Day documentary
When and where: Monday, 10pm on Maori Television.
-TimeOut
