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FIND YOUR VOICE

New Film Starring Adam Saunders and Keisha Castle-Hughes To Premiere in Auckland November 21

FIND YOUR VOICE, starring Adam Saunders, Keisha Castle-Hughes and Tama Lundon from the revered band Herbs, premieres on November 21 at Event Cinemas Broadway, Newmarket.

Hosted by Demand.film, the event features entertainment by Herbs and will be followed by a Q&A session.

Tickets are available from: demand.film/event/6126

The film’s star, Adam Saunders, a Māori born in Australia, is one of the producers of FIND YOUR VOICE. He was instrumental in creating the story and also composed some songs for the soundtrack. Of Ngāti Kahungungu descent, Saunders has worked for the past 10 years as an actor and presenter in Australian television (Blue Water High, Dance Academy, Creature Features) and has had roles in international feature films Truth and Hard Target 2. He also directs and writes and has his own production company Killa Pictures.

Saunders says while the story of FIND YOUR VOICE is not autobiographical, the lead character, Elvis - known as E - is similar to his own experience as a young man in Australia disconnected from his (Māori and Chinese) roots. He says coming to New Zealand, where the majority of the film was shot, was a humbling experience.

“I was feeling quite intimidated because I know little of my background or culture, but my aunties and uncles were so accepting and I discovered that there are whānau members who are singers and so I didn’t feel so unusual in being an entertainer.”

Keisha Castle-Hughes plays Princess, a kapa haka performer with other, not-so-wholesome, business activities, who contributes to E’s awakening.

Tama Lundon, also to be seen in the upcoming Tearepa Kahi documentary, Herbs: Songs of Freedom, is Saunders’ uncle and plays that role in the film, mentoring E in making music that counts.

Director Chris Herd, who has an extensive background in making television for young people, says FIND YOUR VOICE is a story about searching for your identity.

“E wants to write a hit song, but has nothing original to say. It’s not until he hits rock bottom that he realises what is truly important.

“Adam Saunders understood the part immediately, and provided a wealth of ideas for the screenplay and the character of E. He is a multitalented and charismatic actor who can sing and dance, so playing a musician was natural for him”.

FIND YOUR VOICE had its world premiere in the 2018 Maui Film Festival in Hawaii, where it won the Narrative Feature World Cinema Award.

FIND YOUR VOICE is a coming-of-age drama and an Australian view of New Zealand, which follows the improbable misadventures of an aspiring rap artist from the streets of Sydney, blessed with the minimum of talent and maximum of ego.

After an unexpected windfall, he returns to his Māori roots in scenic New Zealand to search for his soul and his true voice.

He soon becomes lost on the road to fulfilment as love, culture and cash collide. Find Your Voice is a celebration of family and culture in this comical yet spiritual odyssey.

Starring Adam Saunders, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Tama Lundon

Winner: Narrative Feature World Cinema Maui Film Festival

Official selection Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival

Official selection SR Socially Relevant Film Festival New York

Demand.film is hosting this premiere in advance of making FIND YOUR VOICE available for people to organise their own cinema screenings of the film. For more information see: demand.film/see-how-demand.film-works