Draft 2 PhD Introduction - ResearchSpace@Auckland

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compromises inevitable in any challenging film location; and the strong inputs from
various cultural traditions. Nevertheless, Ward’s perfectionism and intense personal
commitment ensured that he remained the prime mover and central point of reference.
In the case of Vigil, the textual results confirm the strong degree of authorship despite
the complexity of the filmmaking process.
Curiously, Vigil is Ward’s most “New Zealand” film, despite its singularity. Its New
Zealandness is apparent not in terms of the influence of other local films, but in its
subject matter and in its links with broader aspects of New Zealand culture (such as the
tradition of painting and the director’s own life experience). It does, however, also
contain elements that might be described as archetypal, such as the love triangle with its
Oedipal undertones, and its mythic or religious associations. This unusual blend of
local and mythic features was further evidence that Ward was developing a distinctive
aesthetic. The film has stood the test of time and is acknowledged as having had an
important influence on the direction of New Zealand film. Vigil continued the tradition
of Ward attracting highly talented collaborators, one of whom was the producer, John
Maynard who went on to work with him on The Navigator: a Medieval Odyssey.
The Navigator was originally intended to be financed by New Zealand sources, but after
the collapse of local funding, Ward and Maynard went to Australia to find new sources
of funding for the film. It eventually became a New Zealand/Australian co-production
although this had a far-reaching impact on its creative aspects. Several aspects of The
Navigator were common to his earlier films: the inspiration for the story came
(indirectly) from his own experiences; the script was slowly developed from isolated
images; the details were researched with an almost obsessive energy; the film reflected
Ward’s art-school training in the painterly, chiaroscuro look of the cinematography; it
focused on aspects of spirituality; and its narrative contained powerful mythic elements.
It differed from Ward’s previous films in its depiction of a world that was essentially
masculine. (Granted, there was a curious ambiguity about Toss’s gender in Vigil – she
was to some extent a stand-in for Ward as a child.) The budget was also much larger
than that of any of his earlier films (much of the budget was spent on complex special
effects) and for this reason, there was an increased pressure on him to attract a wide
audience, rather than just an “art-house” one.