The film, some might say is done and dusted but that couldn’t be further from the truth. I’m only starting out this journey and maybe one day I’ll be able to say I’ve made a difference, for now there’s work to be done.

First the thesis, it unfolds on the pages only with the most determined encouragement and heavy machinery (or is that just me?), it will take longer than perhaps it should but most importantly I intend on getting it right.

And while I chip away at those empty pages of glaring white, the forum continues to meet and work, the future of the basin is still in question, it’s still up to you. Finding the balance between environment and industry, and more importantly, recognising the two must complement each other as making them competitors will ensure both will lose out in the end, is key to a future for all.

I might sound a bit like a hippie in saying this but we are all connected, the destruction of our native environment is not a loss we can survive and the sooner we realise this the better we can manage the great changes that are before us.

Think about your future people, I’d like mine to include clean air, fresh water some nice lamb ribs and a glass of fresh NZ milk – but maybe I’m asking for too much, what do you think?

While the film itself is done and dusted there is still a seemingly endless collection of things to be accumulated, and one of these collected items is the sneak previews / trailer and ‘extras’ – ie footage that didnt make it into the final cut.

So keep you eyes peeled!

first up is a silly little clip about spiders featured on my other blog – find it here.

Coming soon will be comments from some of the wonderful characters that ended up on the cutting room floor (including Claire Barlow the Mackenzie District Mayor and Josh Nelson a local at the Twizel area school).

And today I’m back (finally) to tell you that the past few months of chaos have paid off. Congratulations, it’s a movie!

The final film is called Green or Gold, not black and white and features the Mackenzie/Waitaki basin including some of its struggles with the present.

Helping it with its story are:

Jim Morris of Ben Avon station in the stunning Ahuriri.

Tony Gloag from Buscot Station near Omarama (and home of the best backpackers in the area).

Richard Peacocke, owner of Glenn Eyrie downs and a director of Southdown Holdings Limited and Williamson Holdings Limited.

And for those who want to find out more, come and check out the premiere!

‘Green or Gold’ will be playing along with 6 other short films (25 minutes each) at 6pm on the 16th of November at Dunedin’s Regent theatre.

The films range in theme from sharks and politics to endangered birds and curling, all are well worth a visit and for only $5 what have you got to lose?

Tickets will be available through the Centre for Science Communication and the Regent Theatre.

Hope to see you all there

- Sof

I have talked before about the problem with names but what you don’t know is what the movie is called. And there’s the nub, how do you name a movie about a place when you’re struggling to name the place in a meaningful way?

It was all very well for me to make my own definition (see the linked post above). But not everyone who sees the movie will have read the blog, and the nature of blogs is that only parts are read – so how could they know?

A film needs to be able to stand alone, providing its own context and only rely on outside information for enrichment rather than understanding of the content – and it starts with a name. . .anyone see my dilemma yet?

But I have some ideas, and they’ve been researched and been considered with great ohm (imagine me staring into space with furrowed brow chin resting in hand), but if you don’t understand them then there’s work still to be done – so tell me what you think.

…without further ado…I’ll test the first name on you:

Green or gold – Back country dreams.

You kiwis out there might remember we had a little snow recently – Perfect for the film right!!! beautiful and deadly, adds jeopardy to the story……blah blah blah. Only in reality I like many of us was stuck at home, however . . .

Sofie, Annie, Dalek, Oscar, Rowan

other creative avenues were explored in our limited winter wonderland as you can see we invited the neighbours to help us build a snowman (or snow Dalek). I hope all my farmer friends are doing ok, and didnt loose too many lambs, hopefully that’s behind us and the spring sun will creep in soon (there’s been some spotted here in Dunedin but for how long?).

And whats the film all about?

Well that one I’ve been struggling to get my head around and if you’ve read some of my earlier posts maybe you’ll have an idea,

or at least a glimpse of my evolution of ideas.

When I started out this seemed to be a pretty simple issue:

- Dairy farming is an ecological disaster

- The Mackenzie/ Waitaki basin is an area of outstanding values

- I need to convince people to keep Dairying out and maintain the basin as it is.

Whereas in reality things are far more complicated than that. While I stand by much of what I thought before the answer to many questions depends

It depends on the station, on the paddock, on the managers and owners and the climate that each one has to work in and its different for everyone. So while I’m still not a fan of intensive farming, and in some instances i know it is the wrong choice for the Mackenzie/ Waitaki (in my opinion, and it’s for you to decide what value that has) my whole approach to this project has changed thanks to all the people who took the time to tell me their stories.

Theres no question that some farmers behave as though the law doesnt apply to them, and sometimes it seems lack of enforcement encourages this, but remember this isnt everyone, and it certainly isnt confined to dairy famers (you might remember my soapbox moment a while back over seeing beef cattle in the Ahuriri). You can’t tar all farmers with the same brush, even within ‘types’ or styles of farming each one is different and in such a unique and variable environment each farm needs to be treated accordingly.

These people of the basin told me their histories and the passion they have to be here, they showed me the commitment required to survive in an uncompromising environment and the devastation when things go wrong. They took me across the plains and up the valleys of this wild country so I could see their stories laid out in the land.

This is a place where people have passion and perseverance, where science and technology meet really smart thinkers to find newer better ways to survive, and preserve, and pass something on in better condition than they found it.

These are the true guardians, the stewards of a wild and wonderful place and there’s a name I think fits them well – Ahikaa: those who keep the home fires burning. These are the people on the land working it every day, while this place holds a place in the hearts of many New Zealanders these are the people who hold that place for us, they care for it on behalf of all, and that needs to be recognised and supported.

Something to think about…

With a little moonlight glowing and the brightness of the stars (so many stars) my eyes could adjust to see my surroundings bathed in an eerie nighttime glow. Occasionally we could see another shooter’s spotlight – miles away by measure but seemingly nearby due to the wide open plains that the basin is known for, and some great flashes marked the military camp over the paddocks and across the road.

So so beautiful!

I’ve already talked a bit about the proposed starlight reserve for the Mackenzie but I don’t know if you can tell really how incredible the night sky really is without seeing it, and while I can’t take you there (thought i recommend you visit) I can share some of my attempts to capture the marvellous night sky of the Mackenzie basin.

The pictures taken above were on the night of a full moon and seem to capture the atmosphere on a night like this, it was almost like daylight with the hills painted in cool browns rather than their daytime golds.

Hope you like them even half as much as I.

-S

But it’s getting there, one piece at a time – edges first?

In the mean time there are adventures to draw me out of the edit suite. I was lucky enough to do some more exploring on my latest filming trip and while some time was taken attending the Upper Waitaki forum meeting (something I am curious to see the results from early next year), I also got out to some mountaintops and rugged cows. I caught some fish and met a sheep called Annabel, and was treated to a tour of Balmoral – a station in the north of the basin that showcases some of the best examples of ‘classic’ Mackenzie country alongside the great innovations of modern farming. Every time I step into the basin it’s like traversing a gateway to another world, how privileged am I.

As a small country we naturally argue no! Despite our size we make important contributions to the world, and we certainly do our best to play with the big boys but do we need to have a bit of a re-think about the way we manage our resources.

We’re not big, and that’s a fact we cannot change. So should we be working on getting more and more produce out of what we have, or is it perhaps smarter to be looking at increasing profit rather than produce – the two are not necessarily linked.

The way I see it, what we want is to grow economies (in the basin for instance). There are problems and limitations associated with increasing production that we wont always be able to deal with, and these need to be recognized and ‘worked around’.

Lets think about what it is we need from our resources, and what it is we want – and make a plan.

Increasing production in the Mackenzie is and isn’t a good idea, but which of those it is depends on who you are and what you do.It’s just not as black and white as all that, and the answer is probably somewhere in the middle.

Increased produce from the same amount of land means intensification. Intensification usually involves the application of fertilizers, increased management and better access to water. In the Mackenzie this sort of treatment can be simplified to the creation of a less extreme environment where the less resilient pasture grasses and crops do better, and while this is bad news for the natives that have evolved over hundreds of years to dominate the desert that is the Mackenzie it is arguably only applicable to areas already managed and not of significant native biological value.

Increased management (as far as technology and man power) is an acceptable cost to land managers when overall profits are increased with the increase in production and may even be reduced in the long-term as pastures become homogenized.

Concerns arise over any additional application of fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides, but it seems that problems arise in individual cases and must be dealt with as such.

The biggest problem associated with intensification comes down to water. Surface water is already intensely managed in the Upper Waitaki catchment, as anyone who has visited the area will know.

Problems around water are varied, some of which I’ve discussed before, particularly long-term effects on ground water and the health of the remaining braided rivers but I really wanted to say something about economics.

And economics are not my strong suit so please excuse the meandering.

Are we arguing a moot point, if there isn’t enough water to irrigate in the way that is detrimental to the landscape values of the basin (as power production schemes seem to have tight controls on much of the surface water in the basin anyway), and if management of irrigation is such that it isn’t affecting the long-term health of ground and surface water (which, with the help of good farm managers and technological advances, seems within our grasp) then whats the problem?

Economically we should look at water as something that will give some farmers (not all) access to relatively small quantities in order to giver them more surety, allowing better planning and consistency in production = better long-term planning and opportunity for investment.

And in the end

Perhaps the question should be: Are we banging our heads against a wall increasing land use and intensification of already managed land – and potentially screwing ourselves (the long-term health of the environment and therefore our ability to use the services it provides) in the long-term to do it?

Lets think smarter. New Zealand is already known for doing odd things well, this is an idea we can grow – and grow economies from!

Think quality over quantity, find a niche and fill it well. Can we realistically compete with places like the US in terms of quantity?

Pukaki Scientific Reserve

My May travels to the basin have been both disappointing and rewarding.

I’m new to the challenges of film-making and still coming up with things that get in the way, and this trip was plagued by them. The biggest problem has been working around people’s schedules to get interviews done and his was just one of those best laid plans that go awry (I’ve had plenty of legitimate excuses for moving interviews like tonsillitis) but aside from these evolving plans the trip was a great success.

I visited Pukaki and the great mountains with a couple of DoC officers monitoring traps in preparation for the release of the lovely (dorky) teenage black stilts later this year. It’s not a great job (killing things for a living) but it’s a crucial part of New Zealand conservation and a pretty amazing office.

We also visited the Twizel area school and were privileged to meet and chat with some of the students about the changes happening around them. We came up with an epic (and super messy) brainstorm to describe some of the problems, potential solutions and the interested parties. Special thanks to a particularly astute young man who gave me some very grown up views of what’s really going on (see the movie for more on clever kids).

Another challenge has been the backing away of some of the dairy farmers I have approached regarding filming their operations. It’s a hard thing to trust some stranger to portray you fairly and honestly to the rest of the world, particularly as the dairy industry often gets a pretty bad rap from the media (not always undeservedly). But it’s difficult to tell both sides of a story if mostly one side would rather not comment. I personally see the problems with dairying (in New Zealand in general) as arising with individual management strategies, as is the case with almost any kind of land use. There are places where dairying works very well with minimal environmental impact but it’s not the right choice for all of New Zealand.

I hope to contact a few more farms and see what they have to say, wish me luck!