A film crew shooting for the K Rd Stories short film series. Photo: Supplied
Karangahape Rd is arguably the most storied street in New Zealand.
Once one of Auckland’s main family-friendly shopping strips, it became better known for its colourful characters, vice and sleaze. Now developers are changing its character again.
In the wake of recent increasing gentrification and modernising, James Solomon, Hazel Gibson and Morgan Leigh Stewart began a project to capture some of its history, K’ Rd Stories.
The series of 10 short-films, covering experiences ranging from hangovers to laundromats, aims to share the colour and soul of the street.
WATCH the trailer for K' Rd Stories:
With funding help from NZ On Air, the trio set about approaching film-makers. However, it was not enough for the stories to be just good – they had to be authentic.
“We got so many scripts and treatments, and they were all really fantastic. But some of them did seem like they were written by a ‘tourist’ to K’ Rd,” Stewart said.
After all, K’Rd is so much more than just strip clubs it became known for. It’s also the heart of a culturally rich community.
Knowing there would be a high possibility other stories would be “typically K’ Rd”, filmmaker Nikki Si’ulepa was determined to expose a softer side in Aroha, a story that’s not as simple as boy meets girl.
“I knew there would be stuff about strip clubs, homelessness and prostitution. But this particular story is a love story,” she said.
“I thought I’d write a story what I know about, and then translate that to characters from K’ Rd.”
Another filmmaker, Eddy Fifield, focused on sound for his hangover-inspired story, The Event. He wanted to include the natural buzz of K’ Rd’s community.
“The way we filmed it was very organic”, he said. “A few people start milling in and hanging out in the background and it all feels very natural.”
K’ Rd Stories will premiere tomorrow night as part of First Thursdays, with each film being shown at a different location, repeating every 15 minutes from 6pm-9pm.
Films will be available online from December 8 at krdstories.com.