Peter Burger: On calling the shots...

Peter Meteherangi Tikao Burger (Ngāi Tahu, Rangitane) can thank a childhood lisp for his busy career as a screen director today. Having been sent to speech lessons, he found himself in the wrong class, and discovered the joys of performance in a drama class at a young and impressionable age. Since then, Burger has directed numerous film and television productions, including Until Proven Innocent, which won five Qantas awards in 2009, The Tattooist, Fish Skin Suit, short film Turangawaewae, staring the late Wi Kuki Kaa, as well as the TV series Outrageous Fortune, Go Girls and The Cult.

In this ScreenTalk, Burger talks about:

• How he started out behind the camera
• The joys and anxieties of directing the late Wi Kuki Kaa
• Why editing short film Tama Tū was so satisfying
• How he came to be bestowed the title of Matai while making feature film The Tattooist
• How he approached his work on Outrageous Fortune
• Interesting insights into how lead actor Cohen Holloway created his character in tele-feature Until Proven Innocent
• His thoughts on making Billy, the tele-feature about the life of Billy T James

This video was first uploaded on 14 November 2011, and is available under this Creative Commons licence. This licence is limited to use of ScreenTalk interview footage only and does not apply to any video content and photographs from films, television, music videos, web series and commercials used in the interview.

Interview, Camera and Editing – James Coleman