Source: Eastern Institute of Technology – Tairāwhiti
1 day ago
EIT Bachelor of Creative Practice (Screen Production) student Kayla Tepania won Wift Best Female Filmmaker at this year’s Vista Foundation 48Hours Gisborne Final.
EIT Bachelor of Creative Practice (Screen Production) student Kayla Tepania has been recognised for her work on the big screen at this year’s Vista Foundation 48Hours Gisborne Final.
Kayla (Ngāpuhi, Te Whānau-ā-Apanui and Tainui) says she entered the competition this year to redeem herself following an attempt in her first year of study, but did not expect to win the Wift Best Female/Gender Diverse Filmmaker at the regional finals.
Her team HaReKa Films and their film ‘What Remains’ was also selected as a finalist, and nominated for best director, best script, best editing, best use of genre, best use of element 2 (a traveller or neighbour) and best use of element 4 (an exit).
“For me, it’s quite a big award. Just being recognised in that field is quite incredible, particularly given that the people who judged the category are acclaimed industry professionals. So, it really is validation for me,” Kayla says.
“I couldn’t have done it without the team. It just makes me feel proud to be representing the region. So, I just feel very proud and shocked at the same time.”
The Vista Foundation 48Hours is the country’s largest guerrilla filmmaking competition where filmmakers have just one weekend to make a short film. As part of the requirements, they must also include some random elements.
This year, her genre was animal adventure film. While it is largely left up to their own imagination, they had to include a traveller or neighbour, an exit and a warning.
“For us, it’s finding out what we can do with the region. In our film, we have a dog who is travelling from one destination to another, and we took footage from all around Napier and Taradale. Because what we want to do as well is highlight the region for filmmaking specifically.”
The 27-year-old was a producer and co-director alongside Harry Lawson and Regan Bailey.
“I’m so proud of everybody and what we put out. There could be tweaks to it for sure but for what we did in the time we did it in, we’re so happy.”
Kayla, originally from Waiouru, grew up wanting to be an actor.
“I’ve always loved film and TV. I can recall as a child that my parents only let me watch documentaries and films. So, when I was in Auckland during my youth, I signed up with an agency thinking I wanted to be an actor. But I’m not an actor, I don’t have what it takes.
“So, I put that aside and thought well film isn’t for me, thinking that acting was the only part of it. And I moved to the states.”
It wasn’t until she returned to New Zealand, that she decided to apply for jobs in the film industry, and soon found herself enrolled at EIT.
“It was basically one of the directors that told me about EIT. I’ve always had a passion for film, but I didn’t realise until about three years ago that I was going to be on this side of it.”
Now, in her final year of the degree, Kayla can proudly say she has found her passion.
“Every single job that I do, I’m passionate about and I love it. And actually studying it and learning how to use the gear and do all the practical learning has just helped so much.”
She says the culture at EIT is supportive and focuses on bettering students.
“You can tell that they care about the students and that they want to better the students. They’re extremely supportive, especially with the 48 hours because we were given permission to use all the screen production gear and use the building as a home base to come up with the ideas.”
The awards and nominations they received have fuelled them to aim to do even better next year.
“I’m so excited for next year. We’ve already learned so much, even just from this year’s competition, so as the years go on, it’s just going to get better and better for us hopefully.”
EIT IDEAschool Lecturer Wayne Dobson says: “Kayla’s involvement with the VF48 began in her first year of study when she joined fellow students and recent graduates to compete.
“Two years on she was a driving force behind this year’s entry, which received award nominations in multiple categories. The skills acquired during her studies and the collaborative nature of the programme have contributed to her success in this competition and locally as an emerging film maker.”
