Kiwi father and son star in blockbuster Ghost in the Shell
Not many actors can say they made their film debut - at the age of 64 - in a scene with Scarlett Johansson and Pilou Asbaek.
Source: Stuff
But that's the claim to fame of Fa'amoana "John" Luafutu - father of rapper Scribe - who was spotted by Ghost in the Shell director Rupert Sanders on a striking poster for his play The White Guitar as he was being driven from Wellington airport to the set.
The poster features heavily tattooed John topless with his two sons, actor Matthias Luafutu and Malo Luafutu (Scribe), who also feature in the play.
He was contacted by a Ghost in the Shell representative to discuss appearing in the film, and they auditioned in Christchurch.
Unfortunately, Malo, or "the famous one" as proud dad John puts it, was not selected.
But John was thrilled when he found out he would be joined on set by Matthias, a Toi Whakaari-trained actor who stared in 2013's Shopping.
"Apparently the director said one of the first things he saw when he got off the plane was the poster up here at the top of Hannah Playhouse and when he saw our faces and our bodies and our tattoos he said 'get those guys'," John says.
Shooting for the father-son duo took six weeks of early morning starts, sometimes 4am, and hours in make-up having prosthetics fitted.
John kept it real on set, proudly wearing his lavalava and jandals between takes.
Being waited on hand and food and having a trailer was something that took getting used to.
They feature in a scene with Johansson, who did not pull any "diva stuff", John says.
"She was just a young woman with a baby, she had two nannies, a bodyguard, but she was just normal, didn't put on any diva stuff, she was just walking around being professional."
He was not nervous about acting in a scene with an A-lister, in fact, he doesn't get nervous about many things, he says.
"She's a young, American girl who's a good actor, with her face all over the world, and it was an honour to be in her presence."
Mattias says he was surprised how much Johansson looked like his cousin, "so it was a bit of an anti climax actually", he laughs.
Matthias, a Game of Thrones Fan, was excited to have direct dialogue with Pilou Asbaek, who also stars in the hit series.
"He was awesome and I loved his craft, watching him work and how he did things, I learnt a lot.
"Plus, him being a bloke," adds John, "We were just talking and stuff afterwards."
John is happy that one day his grandchildren will be able to see him in a big Hollywood film.
"They'll be able to say, 'hey! There's Grandpa!' you know? It's a forever thing, for me its like a little pictorial of history for the future when im gone."
For Mattias, one of the best parts about being in film was sharing the experience with his father. It was also a big part of his desire to do The White Guitar.
"Just to be on film with my dad, knowing our families in Samoa an Christchurch will be see us in it."
As far as future blockbuster roles for Matthias go, "I'd like to see what happens," he says, having recently auditioned for another Hollywood action film set for 2018.
"But yeah, as long as I can put a roof over my head doing what I love, I'm happy. It was a great experience and one I'll always remember."
Filming at Miramar's Stone Street Studios recently wrapped for Ghost in the Shell, based on the Japanese manga series of the same name.
Images: David White/Fairfax NZ and Paramount Pictures