The Aphrodisiac Trail

This 1983 documentary looks at the (then booming) export of deer antler velvet from New Zealand farms to Asia where the “horns of gold” are highly valued as an aphrodisiac and cure-all tonic. The doco captures the hazards of the trade: from bulldogging (hunters leaping from helicopter skids onto wild deer), to volatile markets in Hong Kong and Korea. The players include a triad of Asian middlemen “who make the millions”, and Kiwi deer entrepreneur Tim Wallis, who led a delegation of farmers to China in 1981 to discover the secret of the Eastern love potion. 

Rob Brooks was one of the first to capture deer. Today as one of the biggest antler producers he’s is also a great advocate of its properties.

– From the narration

Key Cast & Crew

Jeff Williams

Director

John Keir

Producer

John Gordon

Writer

Ken Saville

Sound Mix

Stephen Bell-Booth

Music

Rod Wilson

Sound