Production
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It takes a child to save his grandfather, mother and friend from abuses that nobody chooses to see as he reveals the middle-class hypocrisies and prejudices of a small New Zealand town, in 1967. We are left asking ourselves - has anything much changed during the more than fifty years since then?
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In the summer heat of 1960s Hawke's Bay, fifteen-year-old Callum stands at the crossroads of truth and silence, watching the adults around him navigate a world of moral compromise. This is a story about the courage it takes to speak when everyone else stays quiet.
Growing up in 70s and 80s Hawke's Bay, I witnessed the “do as I say, not as I do” culture that normalised the silencing of inconvenient truths - especially around abuse, grief and trauma. My generation absorbed it as the price of social harmony. But silence is never harmless; it’s a wound caused by the powerful ignoring those preyed upon. This film asks what happens when one young person refuses to comply.
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WRITERS STATEMENT
The first draft of Callum emerged with remarkable ease, inspired by the vivid style and emotional clarity of Mark Sweet’s original work, The History Speech.
The audience is invited - sometimes uncomfortably - to see the world through Callum’s eyes, to marvel at his resilience, and to fear the inevitable consequences of his choices.
From the beginning, the characters felt authentic and alive, as did the mood and tone of the story. Since then, through invaluable collaboration and creative input, the script has matured into a seamless, fast- paced, and deeply affecting drama.
While Callum is punctuated with lighter moments that offer the audience relief, its heart lies in confronting the uncomfortable truths of prejudice, abuse, and historical injustice. This darker current creates a compelling tension that drives the narrative forward.
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Having produced a total of 28 films (24 documentaries, 3 short films and a feature film (‘The Rehearsal’ 1996), upon review, they appear to reflect the theme of people making a change in society despite significant challenges.
This has led to many of my films winning numerous awards at International FilmFestivals as well as a Human Rights award for our documentary ‘Bomb Harvest’.
Upon reading the novel ‘The History Speech’ by Mark Sweet (a finalist in the NZ Book Awards), I felt a surge of excitement in the possibilities of developing it into a feature film.
I immediately contacted Paula Whetu Jones, a first-rate Director who created such an impact with her expertise on the astonishing feature film ‘Whina’.
Callum the 14yo lead character, is a character with whom it is easy to relate. Over the course of the film, Callum will take us on a journey that discovers what makes a decent human being.
The memories of life growing up in the 1960s appeals greatly to me - it was a time of joy with an undercurrent of the unpleasant side of society. Issues of classism, PTSD, homophobia, abuse and belonging will make for a most impactful film.
Our lead writer and Executive Producer, Andrew Marfleet (novel ‘A Fatal Misuse of Time’ feature ‘The Brighton Miracle’) has crafted an emotional and moving script. I am proud to have had input into the script along with Paula who was Script Editor.
Hawke’s Bay has many landmark buildings that lend itself to wonderful location filming.
The film, with a realistic budget of $7.9m, will be ideally suited to screening in four arenas:
1. International Film Festivals such as NZIFF, Melbourne or Sydney, New York, Toronto, London
2. Major LGBTO+ Film Festivals
3. Cinema release
4. Major Streaming Services