Opening of the NZ International Film Festival 2009 - The September Issue

The 2009 New Zealand International Film Festival was launched at the Regent Cinema on the evening of 6 July 2009 with R.J. Cutler’s documentary The September Issue. The film takes a close look at the notorious Anna Wintour, editor-in-chief of the prestigious American Vogue magazine, and the nine-month process it takes to create their September issue.

Known as the fashion world’s annual bible, the September issue of Vogue is legendary. The film is shot during the production of the September 2007 issue – the biggest ever edition created to date with a whopping 840 pages including fashion, couture, beauty and 727 pages of adverts – now there’s a sales team for you!

The film crew not only followed Anna Wintour to runway shows and fashion weeks, but also to private breakfast meetings with advertisers and designers and into her office to film heated debates about finances and editorial content between herself and Vogue’s creative director, Grace Coddington, who modelled for Vogue in the 1960s.

The insight in to the working and personal life of Anna Wintour is fascinating. The power and influence that this one woman has on the fashion industry is astounding, and it is amusing to see some of the world’s most influential fashion designers and photographers cowering or getting flustered under her gaze. The stony, cold looks and demanding, abrupt comments had the entire audience cringing or gasping in shock. The film The Devil Wears Prada was written by a former personal assistant but Meryl Streep, as editor-in-chief Miranda Priestly, has nothing on the real life editor-in-chief of Vogue!

The film is absolutely fascinating and I think even those without an interest in fashion can appreciate the work and commitment it takes to produce the magazine – is it still classed a magazine though when it’s 840 pages? The behind-the-scenes look at one of the world’s most recognised publications is amazing and will have audiences riveted the entire way through.

This is a definitely a must-see film at this year’s New Zealand International Film Festival, which boasts films from 22 different countries including France, Spain, Australia, the UK and some homegrown Kiwi talent.

The New Zealand International Film Festival starts on 30 July and runs until 16 August 2009 at the Regent Cinema on Worcester Street, just off Cathedral Square towards the Avon River.

View the full programme for the New Zealand International Film Festival at www.nzff.co.nz

A Big Night Out in Queenstown

Five nights a week in Queenstown, the boys and girls of the Big Night Out will take you on a bar crawl around six of Queenstown’s liveliest bars. Mix into this six free drinks, $5 jagerbombs, 2-4-1 drinks, cheap food, a raffle with big prizes to be won, some very friendly staff and about 40 fellow drinkers and you know you’re in for a good night out!! 

The crawl starts in the Buffalo Club at 8:30pm Tuesdays to Saturdays (9:30pm during summer). The Big Night Out crew have a desk set up just inside the door – you can either book you’re place before hand by email or just rock on up on the night and sign up then. It costs $25 each to go on the crawl but for that you get a free drink in every bar, a ticket in the raffle to win prizes such as sky dive with NZ Sky Dive, an AJ Hackett bungy jump or ski passes during the winter. You also get a drinking passport which has nine bars who will provide you with special drinks offers (you visit six of these whilst on the bar crawl), a discount for Hell’s Pizza, and even a discount on your taxi ride home – what more can you ask for?? 

It was a fantastic night out – the crawl was incredibly well organised and the crawlers – although a little unsteady on their feet by the end of the night – all enjoyed themselves without any yobbish happens going on and even made a new friend or two along the way. I was impressed that the Big Night Out crew managed to keep us all together throughout the night without appearing to lose anyone along the way. In fact, we managed to acquire more people as we were all having such a good time that people followed us to the other bars!

The Big Night Out has now also started in Christchurch three nights a week, Thursday to Saturday, starting at Shooters bar on Manchester St and heading to 5 bars around the city centre. Free drinks and even free nibbles too! For more info check out www.bignightout.net.nz.

The Google Game

The Google Game: Go to Google and type in quotation marks your name and then "likes to" (eg. "Steve likes to"). Type in the first ten things that come up and repost in your own note. (I learnt so much about myself...)

1. Katherine likes to play with Mommy's make-up.

2. Katherine likes to be up around people's faces so she can give them kisses, and she likes to ride around on shoulders.

3. katherine likes to dance.

4. Katherine likes to piff cigarette butts at people who mispronounce her last name.

5. Katherine likes to fish as much as Jonathan, yet she even enjoys a good softball game.

6. In her spare time, Katherine likes to read, do crafts, walk and snowshoe.

7. Katherine likes to keep my tack clean and spends lots of time with me. (ummmmmmmmmmm!!!!)

8. Katherine likes to fit in a british breakfast before her workout at Bally's.

9. Katherine likes to make sure to keep her friends sober if she can help it

10. Is it me or does it seem like Katherine likes to hold on to her classic pieces instead of constantly going through accessory by accessory

Man these were way too good to just do the first 10!!! And I think the following were better!! lol so............

11. Katherine likes to work with porcelain, a fine white high-firing clay, developed by the Chinese for its beauty and strength.

12. Katherine likes to climb. Katherine thinks you should climb, too. Actually, everyone should climb all the time.

13. katherine likes to channel my thoughts in class !!!!!

14. Katherine likes to shoot

15. Astronaut Katherine likes to keep her space suit temperature at 76° F when she’s doing a space walk. (yeah baby!!)

16. Katherine likes to paint her nails pink…..to hide the mossy green color of her nails. (Eeeeekkkkk!!!)

17. Katherine likes to ride in the front seat!

18. Katherine likes to talk about etiquette, no matter how irrelevant it may seem, as seen here, uniforms, even when it makes her seem weird

19. Katherine (likes to be known as Kat) heads up our Corporate Golf area.

20. Katherine likes to relax with a spot of tennis and is also a qualified personal trainer (i wish!!)

25 Random Things About Me

RULES: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, and/or goals about you.



1) I once spent 2 hours in a Korean jail cell before the police chief was bribed with a bottle of whiskey and he let me out!! I do probably have an outstanding warrent for my arrest there though as I think I was supposed to pay a fine but just left the country instead! Either way I'm not going back to find out!

2) I hate camping but love music festivals – it’s the only time you’ll get me miles away from a shower and sleeping in a tent!!

3) My geography teacher once told me I’m a mind full of useless information and that’s totally true – I remember the most useless but I think very interesting facts about random shite but bugger if I can remember how to do trigonomitry or even how you spell it!!

4) I broke my leg on the luge in Rotorua and sat in hospital all afternoon with my cousin whilst the rest of the family went to a water park cos they thought I was faking it!!

5) I fell off the podium in a nightclub in Oz and spent the night in hospital much to the amusement of the hospital staff – but I managed to score a date with the cute doctor! (actually he was a nurse but doctor sounds better!! Lol)

6) I thought I had malaria when I was in Singapore – but then realised it was just a hangover mixed with a bit of jetlag!

7) I had a motorbike accident in Thailand because I slammed on the front brake and not the foot brake cos I saw a gorgeous bag in a shop window and wanted to buy it!! After all the blood was cleared and the iodine administered – the lady from the shop gave me the bag!

8) I got beaten up by guys from Java when I was in Bali and thought I was going to die or at least end up raped – then I saw red and somehow managed to get myself out of the situation (scaring the shit out of everyone including the girl I was with) but I’m still alive to tell the tale!

9) I wish I was a mermaid!

10) I've been to 34 countries around the world so far (although I think it's more but can't remember them all!!) - I want to go to all the others though too before I die. I am learning how tofly though so hoping this will help in getting me to the rest of the countries one day!!

11) My favourite animals are elephants and whales. I however, hate black and white cats - my cousins had one that was the spawn of satan and it totally put me off them for life!!

12) I used to work at the BBC TV centre and was a runner on the Esther Rantzen show. It was my favourite ever job but I didn’t get paid for it!

13) I had the world’s longest job title: I was the Sales Manager for the Theatrical Division for the Middle East, Africa and Eastern Europe for 20th Century Fox. I left because I didn’t want to get addicted to cocaine & have to rely on it to get through a day – and I got so bored as meeting famous people really wasn’t that exciting! Although Orlando Bloom is HOT!!!

14) I had an imaginary friend when I was younger – I think she was called Stephanie – however a psychic once told me that she was actually a ghost! I was also told that I was a white witch and a psychic too!! Ummmmm lotto numbers please???

15) I believed I was the lost Princess Anastasia when I was little (and kinda still wished it was true!! Lol) I used to play princess dress up on the orient express with my great grandmother and her jewels and the dining room chairs and she’d tell me stories of Russia and Latvia in the old days and I think I just put 2 and 2 together – or actually she probably let me believe me I was!! Lol

16) I rescued a white Maltese puppy from a nasty old women in Korea and named her Anastasia or Asia for short! I kinda what to name my daughter Anastasia if I ever have one!! Lol

17) I have an addiction to sticking cotton buds in my ear – so much so that I gave myself eczema in my ear! I am now not allowed to stick anything smaller than my elbow in my ear (although I do still put the cotton buds in there a few times a week shhhhhhh – and how the hell am I supposed to put my elbow in my ear anyway??? And yes I have looked like a twat attempting that one!!)

18) I really want to be in a band again and would love to record an album! Anyone a musician or need a singer??

19) I love being blonde but am far from it but am very good at pretending to be blonde if I need to?? “I’m so sorry officer I didn’t realise how fast I was going honestly – which one is the brake again?” lol (however when hungover I am a TOTAL blonde and do the stupidest stuff!!)

20) I’m very artistic and creative at times – but I have to be in the mood to do it – and if I have to do something then I can’t do it for shite no matter how hard I try!

21) Movies and TV programmes frequently make me cry – however if someone is there then I will not shed a single tear!!

22) I am an expert at packing a huge amount of stuff into the car – comes from years of sneaking stuff into the car as a kid when we went on holiday!

23) I love building furniture or decorating stuff but I have to do it when no one else is around or in the middle of the night as I get distracted easily by everything else that is going on!!

24) I love just smiling for the hell of it or at people and seeing how many people I can make smile in return – I especially love doing this at traffic lights or whilst walking down the street!

25) I sing at the top of my lungs and dance all the time in the car – and frequently get caught doing it at traffic lights or by the person driving in front of me in their rear view mirror!

Billy Connolly Live at Westpac Arena Christchurch

Friday night 13 February saw Billy Connolly on stage at Christchurch’s Westpac Arena. I have for a long time now been a huge fan and Billy did not disappoint. The mix of completely un-PC comments, stories from long ago and jokes was perfect and had me laughing so hard that my sides still hurt three days later!!

The show lasted for two and a half hours, which was amazing. God knows how he does it, frequently going off track in the middle of a story but always coming back to what he was originally talking about. The joke about how men hate cuddles had me crying with laughter as well as the reminiscing about his encounter with a midget woman on a bus!

It was definitely not for the faint hearted though – the usual mix of swearing and piss taking would be sure to kill off my grandmother, but damn it was funny and well worth it.

A.R.E.A.9 Festival

I love music festivals. To look at me you wouldn’t think so, the main reason being that I’m not a camping girl – I just don’t do it. The idea of waking up in a tiny tent that has become your own personal oven with the sunrise is not appealing in the slightest. Yet there is something magical and wondrous about being in a field in the middle of nowhere with thousands of others, grooving to the beat, sitting in the sun and generally enjoying the musical splendour of a festival (and it’s even worth suffering the mini oven for too!).

I reminisce frequently about the glory days of Glastonbury festival in the UK, so you can imagine my delight when I discovered A.R.E.A. 9. This three-day event was the closest thing to a Kiwi Glastonbury with a fantastic array of kiwi music to boot. The likes of Kora, Black Seeds, Salmonella Dub and Hollie Smith lined up alongside relatively unknown but equally as good up-and-coming talent like Six60, Soul System, Nitidus and Troika. What better way is there to spend a Waitangi weekend than to celebrate all that is great about the NZ – summer in the sun with some great sounds and great people?

A.R.E.A. 9 (Aotearoa Rock Extreme Adventure 09) is the baby of Rosie Moore and Fiona Page from Mission Controlled Events, who 18 months ago decided to try and get Kora to play a gig for them and their mates. The event grew and grew and the result was an amazing 48 hours of non-stop music with some of New Zealand’s finest bands, free zorbing and motorbike acrobatics display. There was even a pub with its own bar menu on site too!

The event was amazingly well organised. The queue to get into the gate didn’t take long at all – we were there for maybe an hour and a half max – but everyone was already chatting and having a good time so it flew past. There was an alcohol amnesty bin before a car search. Ha ha to those who didn’t pay attention to the amnesty bin and got kicked out for trying to smuggle stuff in!

Each group was given a huge 25 sq m of land to pitch their tents and park their cars (100 sq m for those with six tents or more). Compared to Glastonbury this was luxury – and not a rain cloud in site either. The portaloos were constantly cleaned and emptied and there were even hand washing places so we were almost spoilt in comparison to a lot of other events.

The VIP area was awesome and well worth it. The huge tent provided some shade from the sun whilst still being very close to the stage. The drinks and food were discounted from the outside bar, and there was also a cocktail list to really get in the VIP mood. Each VIP guest also received a goodie box with a free Tshirt (spot the bright orange people in the photos!), energy drink (helped keep us awake for the 48 hours), muesli bar (to stave off starvation), condom (just in case!!) and the VIP tag (to prove to the world – and security – that we belonged there).

I had a fantastic weekend – probably the best since Glastonbury 1997 – and can now be seen dancing and grooving to the sounds of Six60 (who I was pleasantly woken up to at 7.30am on the Saturday morning) and dDub (who played an amazing set on the Friday evening) in the car and am thoroughly enjoying them both. I am waiting with baited breath for A.R.E.A. 11, which has be confirmed to happen in 2011.

Taieri Gorge Railway

For some time now, people have been recommending the Taieri Gorge railway to me, so when I found out I was heading down to Dunedin for the week on business, I decided to go down early and try it out.

We were booked in to depart on Sunday afternoon at 12.30pm. I felt like a little kid in the morning when I woke up as found myself really excited about going on the trip and being on a train again – I never knew I missed all those years living in London and travelling around on the tube and on trains to get to work every day!

We arrived at the station about 20 minutes before departure and were greeted by Murray in the ticket office. He heartily welcomed us, issued our tickets, and wished us a great trip as we headed out onto the platform to find our carriage and seats.

A quick stop on the platform to take a few photos and we hopped aboard carriage S eagerly waiting for the train to leave. At 12.30 on the dot, our train conductor gave us a rundown of the safety procedures and then we were on our way.

It takes approx 4 ½ hours return from the Dunedin Railway Station to Pukerangi. On the journey up, you get an ongoing commentary with really interesting facts and little tit bits of information about the history of the railway. On the way down you have time to enjoy a glass of wine or a coffee from the buffet car, take photos or just watch the scenery go by.

The train winds its way through some spectacular and very beautiful landscapes. There are a few stops on the way up so you can get off and take photos as well as about 20 minutes up at Pukerangi station – the half way point of the trip - to have a look around. You can also go out to the back of the train and stand on the platform at the back to take photos as the scenery rushes by.

The gorge is magnificent, and it’s hard to believe that the railway was built in such a rugged landscape over 100 years ago. If anyone was injured whilst building the gorge it would take days to get them to the nearest doctor in Mosgiel.

The train goes over several viaducts along the way and the Wingatui Viaduct is actually the largest steel structure in the southern hemisphere (the Eiffel Tower being the biggest in the northern hemisphere).

The carriages are warm and comfortable and you are free to get up and go outside to take photos or can simply sit and enjoy the scenery from the window of your seats. The history of the railway is fascinating and so it’s well worth paying attention to the commentary.

The train runs every day (except Christmas day) and will go rain or shine – a rarity this day in age with a lot of other tourist activities. It was a grey and overcast day when we went, but the scenery was still amazing and I got some fantastic photographs all the same. I would definitely recommend this trip to anyone who has a spare afternoon in Dunedin. For more information go to www.tairei.co.nz