Documentary on NZ bike racer to have German premiere

A documentary film Love, Speed & Loss that tells the story of New Zealand motorcycle designer and grand prix racer Kim Newcombe will have a German premiere screening in Berlin.

The June 18 screening at the Filmkunst66 cinema will be attended by German friends and colleagues of Kim and Janeen Newcombe who took part in the film. The Newcombes' sons, Mark and Kim Junior, will travel from New Zealand to attend.

The NZ couple made Berlin their home from 1969 to 1973, when Kim worked as an engineer at the Konig marine engine factory.

It was there that Kim Newcombe built his grand prix motorcycle with a Konig engine that he took to second place in the 1973 World 500cc Championship.

The documentary's producer, Richard Driver, said: "It is important that we have this screening in Berlin, as the city is the setting for the story of Kim Newcombe and the Konig motorcycle he built in the 1970s, and his achievements are as much a celebration for the people of his adopted home of Berlin and Germany, as they are for New Zealanders."

The Berlin screening follows a theatre release through Rialto Cinemas in New Zealand and screenings at the Melbourne Real Life on Documentary Festival and the 2005 NZ International Festival.

- NZPA