Each film in the Amiri & Aroha trilogy has featured the rite of passage of a principal character. In Rere’s Children, we share Koriata’s journey from a puppet of the gang to a brave leader who stands up to corruption and bullying and forces the gang into a new and more just direction.

This transformation comes at immense personal cost to Koriata. The old guard of the gang are determined to beat him into submission and today we shot dramatic scenes where Koriata is abducted and threatened with dire consequences if he does not toe the gang line.

The sequence needed to be harsh for Koriata’s redemption to have meaning. Our stellar cast brought professionalism to a challenging shoot and a dark, brutal reality to the scenes.



These Productions Stills demonstrate how the atmospheric location adds to the darkness of the scene. We shot day for night and in the completed film will be at night as Koriata walks home through the deserted car wrecker’s yard.

Lisa Beech acting as Dialogue Coach on set today, helping to facilitate a tough shoot.

Perhaps this scene, more than any other, defines Koriata’s rite of passage, as he learns the cost of dissent from the gang and doing the right thing. The sequence marks a key turning point in Rere’s Children and it felt good to have such an important - and difficult - scene in the can today.