Taika Waititi’s latest film in the making, Do More, is a little different from his usual projects and approach.
Described as “a project for the nation” Waititi is relying on footage shot by New Zealanders of New Zealanders “doing more for themselves and others” which he will curate into a short film that showcases the Kiwi spirit.
The purpose of the film to inspire the All Blacks in a very Kiwi way in the lead up to the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
Waititi says it wasn’t his concept but he said ‘yes’ when approached because he’s a “rugby fanatic” and thinks “it’s a cool idea that has the potential to be a cool final product”.
“I love the All Blacks. I’ve played the game all my life and my family is rugby crazy. I just love seeing the oval ball being tossed around the paddock,” he says.
However, he stresses that Do More is not about sport. It’s about mirroring the spirit and effort that the All Blacks put into the sport for their country.
“It’s showing an appreciation for New Zealanders who do this sort of stuff like care givers. The fact is you don’t just have to be good at sport to be as good as the All Blacks. You can be good at other things as you push yourself in life,” Waititi says.
Waititi does not plan to star in the film, despite having starring roles in his films Boy and What We Do in the Shadows.
“I think based on the criteria [for this project] my life is not as interesting as the videos we’re hoping to get. I don’t think that what I do is ‘doing more’, it’s just ‘doing stuff’,” he says. “We’re looking for videos that demonstrate the extra effort people go to that really shows the Kiwi spirit. The options are endless and that’s the really exciting thing about this project.”
An example he gives of someone who is inspiring and doing more is his uncle who Waititi describes as a caretaker of people in his community. “He’s the guy who goes around the community dropping off fish and crayfish he has caught, making sure people have what they need and are eating, that their cars work,” he says. “What we don’t want is someone sending in a 10-minute video of someone running a half marathon because while that is inspiring we’re looking for more unusual and out of the ordinary things like people doing more for the community and helping people and pushing themselves.”
Footage shot on a smart phone with HD is fine though using a video camera is probably better, Waititi says.
Kiwis based locally and around the world can participate. Videos should not be too long – 60 to 90 seconds preferably. People can upload their footage to www.rexona.co.nz.