Coco Talanoa — Entertainment / Page 33

One of our favourite Kiwi films from last year The Last Saint, an independently financed New Zealand Feature film. The Last Saint, which spawned those famous words uttered by actor Calvin Tuteao “Ponsonby’s gone to the dogs” has started rolling out in international territories with its star, Beulah Koale, winning a Best Actor award at its first festival.

The Last Saint received its international premiere at the Harlem International Film Festival in New York where Koale’s performance in the gritty story of Auckland’s underworld received the Best Actor accolade

Last Saint director, Rene Naufahu said, ”Beulah is one of the most courageous young men I’ve ever met- and he uses this courage to maximum effect in his performance of Minka.…more

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We’re streets ahead of the rest of the world when it comes to diversity on screen and stage, writes the award-winning playwright Victor Rodger. But that’s not where it counts the most.

 Diversity. It’s really just a euphemism that some cultural spin-doctor fabricated so people had an alternative to saying “not white”. That’s what people really mean when they use the term diversity. They’re talking about people who are not white, or not straight, or not in possession of a penis.

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Congratulations to Beulah Koale who has been awarded Best Actor at the 'Harlem International Film Festival' for his epic role as Minka in NZ Film 'The Last Saint' (2014) 

Minka is a teenage Polynesian boy living in the heart of the city. With his P-addicted mother well on the way to going completely off the rails, three people enter his life - each with a promise - each with the power to destroy. Directed & Written by Rene Naufahu, check out an exclusive interview with Rene.

Beulah Koale is on stage with his latest project 'The Events'

Check out more films at the Harlem International Film Festival

Check out the Samoan stage at Polyfest with Beulah Koale

This Island Princess Mahalia slays on X Factor Australia

For seven months last year, Australian filmmaker Bentley Dean and his family lived with one of the South Pacific's last traditional tribes.

With regular fly-in visits from fellow director Martin Butler, they shot a feature film that dramatised the lives of the Yakel tribe in the mountainous areas of a Vanuatu island.

"They still live very traditionally – hunting with bows and arrows and wearing penis sheaths for the men and grass skirts for the women," says Dean.

"They've made a very deliberate decision to conserve their custom as they call it – their culture – because it's only a half-hour drive down the mountain to the main town."

The roughly 200 members of the tribe live by the same beliefs as they have had for centuries, with the same ancient ceremonies.

While they have one modern luxury – mobile phones – without electricity they have to travel to town to charge them.

Now, the film that Dean and Butler shot, called Tanna after the island, has been selected to have a world premiere at the Venice Film Festival in September.…more

When one talks of the greatest wrestlers of all time, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s name is bound to pop up during the conversation. It would be safe to say that he’s the Hulk Hogan of our generation.

Johnson’s enormous popularity extends far beyond the wrestling world, with the California native one of Hollywood’s most successful superstars, as well as a global figure of affection. All that popularity hasn’t diminished his humbleness, with the star being one of the nicest celebrities around; always happy to oblige his fans with selfies or autographs. One thing that has always intrigued Johnson’s fans is his ethnicity, with the wrestler possessing a mixed heritage. And this article decode the question, which is: What is Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s true ethnicity?

Johnson was born into a family of wrestlers, with his grandfather, “High Chief” Peter Maivia a well known wrestler, as well as his dad, Rocky Johnson, who created history by becoming the first black to win the WWF Tag Team Championship, along with partner Tony Atlas.…more