The Little Things
Live-action drama, New Zealand, 2004
Director: Reina Webster
Writer: Reina Webster
Language: English
Colour:Colour
Runtime: 12 minutes
Short synopsis
It's George's 14th birthday and, instead of taking her out for dinner as she had promised, her mum has ditched her to go out with a man. Angry and alone, George heads to the mall for entertainment. After a few run-ins with security there she returns home to find solace in the most unlikely company.
Long synopsis
The film opens with two teenage girls talking. One of them, 14-year-old George, tells her friend that her mother is going to take her out for dinner for her birthday. George walks home to her apartment block, but finds the door locked, her mother inside with a man. She hears them laughing together as her mum tells her to go away and come back later. Angry and hurt, with no money and no particular place to be, George wanders off. Tama, her six-year-old neighbour, tries to join her only to be rejected and told by her that "life sucks and he should get used to it."
George sits counting her coins in a deserted cafeteria in a shopping mall. When the security guard asks her to leave she does so, but not before angrily kicking over a cardboard figure on her way out. When a woman drops a stack of CDs in a music shop, George helps to pick them up, stuffing one under her sweatshirt. She tries to sell it back to the shop assistant but when he offers her only $5 she gives up. George calls home, but only gets the answer machine. She tries to sneak into the cinema but is turned away again by the security guard. In a final act of defiance, George smashes the fire alarm as she leaves the mall.
On her way home, she passes Tama again; he is slouched by the wall looking bored. When he explains, "they're still out," George tells him he should be in bed and walks into her house. A birthday cake and a card, both reminders of that day's significance, await her in the empty flat. George, resigned and sad, opens the card which plays a tinny 'Happy Birthday' song. The card is from her dad and contains a 'lotto' ticket.
Feeling even lonelier, George invites Tama over for a slice of cake. He initially ignores her and continues to throw his tennis ball monotonously at a tin mailbox, but eventually joins her. They toast to her birthday with a bourbon and coke, prepared from the open bottle left by her mother. Aware of George's sadness, Tama sneaks out and presents her with a home-made gift wrapped in kitchen towel. She opens it to find the tennis ball that he had been playing with all evening. They sit in silence and George begins to cry quietly. Tama puts on some music and starts to dance in a silly way and George can't help but smile for a brief moment. It's the little things in life...
Background information
About the film
The film was made mainly with funding from the New Zealand Film Commission's Short Film Fund, but Reina Webster was awarded a grant from Warner Brothers to complete it. Thanks to an experienced casting director, the professional and non-professional cast work very well together. George is played by 14-year-old schoolgirl Norissa Taia, and Tama by six-year-old Romain Waerea. The cast, along with a minimal crew, travelled 250 kilometres north of Auckland to the strange and beautiful city of Whangarei, "whose curious fusion of urban, rural and suburban landscapes seemed to heighten George's sense of dislocation," according to Webster.
The film was completed in 2004 and has since played at many festivals and won many prizes, including the Special Jury Prize at the Berlin Film Festival (Kinderfilmfest) in 2005.
About the film-maker
Reina Webster began her career as a photographic assistant before moving into the fields of broadcasting, television presenting, publicity, producing and directing. She has a BA in English and Film Theory from Auckland University and an MA in Film Directing from the Tisch school in New York. Webster is of Maori descent and has tribal affiliations with Ngai Tuhoe, Ngati Tuwharetoa and Nga Puhi.
She has written and directed two short films, some documentaries and two music videos. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Graduate Fulbright Scholarship, the New Zealand Film Commission's Matiu Mareikura Film Maker Award, and an AMP Premiere Young Achiever's Scholarship.
Teaching materials and additional materials
The teaching materials have been developed by practising teachers to provide a springboard for your own work with your students. Feel free to use and adapt them appropriate to your students' needs.
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