Production
Notes
In 1994 London-based New Zealand writer Kirsty Gunn published her
first novel Rain. It received international acclaim and identified
Gunn as "a new author of undeniable talent" (Sunday Times,
London). The novel was described as a "small masterpiece"
(Fay Weldon in the Sunday Mail) and The Guardian called it "beautifully
controlled and darkly powerful".
The
novel is characterised by Gunn's arresting and beautiful use of
language. "I really loved the sense of atmosphere and foreboding
in the novel and also the reflection on childhood," says Christine
Jeffs, director of Rain. The challenge for Jeffs was to recreate
those elements in the medium of film. "I spent a long time
trying to persuade other people that there was a film in there.
A story about the detail of everyday life, that was worth translating
to the screen."
Christine
Jeffs, one of New Zealand's foremost commercials directors, has
received accolades at Sundance and Cannes with her short film Stroke.
Rain is her first feature film. She spent four years working on
the script. "This is my first film script, and I learned a
lot from the process of writing it."
John
Toon was involved from the film's inception as cinematographer and
associate producer. Robin Scholes joined the production team as
executive producer, and eventually Philippa Campbell, who also worked
on the script, was recruited as producer.
One
of the crucial elements fell into place when Neil Finn came on board
to compose the music for the film. Jeffs has directed music clips
for Finn. "Neil read the script and loved it," she explains.
"He's never done any film composition before. It's a chance
for him to go where he's never gone before so he's very excited."
Rain
is financed by The New Zealand Film Commission, which is handling
international sales.
Director's
Introduction
"I don't take particularly take reference from any director,
I'm inspired by real people and everyday situations."
Christine
Jeffs is one of New Zealand's foremost commercial directors. She
has received national and international awards including a Cannes
Lion, and in 1999 was named as the New Zealand Advertising Industry's
most popular director by AdMedia.
Her
short film Stroke was selected for the Cannes and Sundance Film
Festivals, where it screened to public and critical acclaim. "Christine
is an incredibly talented and experience director with a distinctive
visual style," says Philippa Campbell. "Rain is a very
striking and thought provoking debut."
Jeffs
describes the film as emotionally provocative. "I wanted to
convey a sense of the transience, in that relationships come and
go, and that the moment is precious. In Rain the audience goes on
a journey with a young girl who is exploring complex questions of
power and control. Janey makes some serious choices, which have
very unexpected results."
Jeffs'
wealth of directing experience was invaluable in making Rain. "I've
stood alongside an awful lot of directors and she's one of the very
few that has a total grip on what she's doing," says cinematographer
John Toon. "Christine has a remarkable instinct for that moment
of performance that rings true," adds Campbell. "During
filming, she was constantly searching for a truthful way to portray
the situation. This gives her work as a director a real edge."
"Making
the film allowed me to work with the crew I normally work with on
a bigger scale project, which was good." said Jeffs. She describes
the technical side of making the film as "an exercise in restraint",
but is very happy with the outcome. "It was good to have the
experience of shooting a feature-length film in 32 days."
Asked
to name the most important thing she learned from the process, Jeffs
laughs. "Don't listen to anything anyone else says."
The
Children
Rain is the story of a family, a reflection on childhood and on
the passage from childhood to adulthood. Finding the right actors
to play Janey and Jim was always going to be critical to the film's
success. After an extensive search, Jeffs cast Alicia Fulford-Wierzbicki
as teenager Janey, and Aaron Murphy as her little brother Jim. "The
children stole the show," she says. "They were able to
give of themselves completely through the process of making the
film which is incredible."
Jeffs
worked closely with the children to ensure that they understood
the journey of their characters, and to find truthful ways for them
to express that for the cameras. "The way I worked was to encourage
their individuality and spirit to come across," she explains.
Building trust with the children was essential. "It was important
to allow the children to pace themselves," says Jeffs. "If
Aaron said he couldn't do something I believed him totally."
"I
want the audience to believe the children and go on a journey with
them," says Jeffs. "The film is about families and certain
scenes convey everyday detail that I hope people will respond to."
"It
was fascinating watching how the adult actors and the children became
a family on and off set," adds Campbell.
Janey's
journey towards adulthood drives the film. Newcomer Alicia Fulford-Wierzbicki
is extraordinary in the central role. "Janey's a very extreme
character, and Alicia is a particularly balanced 14 year old,"
says Jeffs. "She had a strength, which allowed her to go on
a weird journey with the character. At times it was tough for her,
but she came through really well."
Scenes
were shot in chronological order wherever possible, to help the
story develop naturally. "In the film, you see Janey start
off in one place and end up somewhere completely different,"
says Jeffs. "It was important that the film was shot in sequence
which allowed that to happen for Alicia, so her journey developed,"
adds Toon.
Jeffs
saw several hundred small boys, before scouting Aaron Murphy from
a school close by the location. "Aaron is incredibly natural
and incredibly clever," says Jeffs. "He was just waiting
to show it off to the world."
Location
Rain was shot on location around the Mahurangi peninsula on the
eastern coast of New Zealand's North Isiand in April/May 2000. In
comparison to the West Coast, the North Island's more gentle Eastern
bays have had little on-screen exposure. "It's a landscape
that hasn't been explored in depth in a feature film until now,"
says producer Philippa Campbell. "A place of incredible beauty."
Gunn's
novel is set at Lake Taupo, and the filmmakers considered Taupo
as a location. "It didn't really have the same variety of texture
and atmosphere that a place like this did which is more estuary
and tidal orientated, but has the mud flats and big wide open spaces,"
says director Christine Jeffs. "Water was important. It didn't
need to be a lake, and it didn't need to be the sea. It was just
about water."
It
was also important to communicate the sense of childhood, and of
a typical New Zealand holiday community. Jeffs discovered a private
bay with a cluster of original baches (or holiday houses) that became
the central location. "They had a timeless quality, which was
very important for Rain," she explains. "We wanted it
to not be specifically art directed to evoke the 70s. We had to
feel that it was then and reminded us of our childhood, but could
also be now."
Stylistically
Rain alludes to the 70s without losing its contemporary feel, capturing
the timelessness of childhood holidays. "The location was perfect
for the story," says Campbell. "It evokes that perfect
summer holiday we all like to think back to." The weather and
landscape added their own challenges to the process. A summer story,
Rain was filmed during an unseasonably mild autumn, and nature was
surprisingly accommodating. "Somehow the weather just hung
in there," says cinematographer John Toon. "It completely
turned to custard the week after we wrapped."
The
film also captures a moment in time in a documentary sense. Within
a few years, the bay used as the central location will become part
of New Zealand's regional parks network, and all the houses will
be removed. "That feels very special," says Campbell.
"We were in the right place at the right time to capture the
special qualities of a place that will soon be changed forever."
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