The Valley Settlers

This partly fictionalised short film portrays "typical" life in a farming community. After a brief acknowledgement of local iwi, the film follows a farmer as he works on his Hawke's Bay property. The hardships of living rurally in the 1950s are discussed and farmers' wives show their community spirit by organising dances and cake stalls. The environmental impacts of agriculture are examined too, when heavy rain causes deforested land to slip. The rural town of Puketapu is representative of many Kiwi farming areas, which were mainly established by European settlers in the 1800s. 

We harvest and plow and sow, and follow the seasons round. We keep pretty busy.

– Farmer Duncan summarises life in the valley

Key Cast & Crew

Randal Beattie

Camera

Claude Wickstead

Sound Recordist

Barbara Parker

Assistant Director

Bruce Weir

Narrator

Ken Hobman

Narrator (Kiwi bloke voice)

Michael Forlong

Director, Writer, Editor