Box office hit Sione’s Wedding
We’re streets ahead of the rest of the world when it comes to diversity on screen and stage, writes the award-winning playwright Victor Rodger. But that’s not where it counts the most.
Diversity. It’s really just a euphemism that some cultural spin-doctor fabricated so people had an alternative to saying “not white”. That’s what people really mean when they use the term diversity. They’re talking about people who are not white, or not straight, or not in possession of a penis.
Diversity was the word that sprang forth from Matt Damon’s lips this week in the reality TV show Project Greenlight, which gives first-time filmmakers the chance to make a movie. He used the D-word while casually schooling Effie Brown, an African American film producer (and the lone non-Palagi in the room) on the ins and outs of diversity in the film industry. And he did it in that annoyingly casual way that educated, entitled and ostensibly liberal people sometimes have. (Well, brother did go to Harvard so I guess he knows what he’s talking about, right?)
Brown had suggested, during a discussion of a project in which the only black character is a prostitute who “gets hit by her white pimp”, that some care should be taken in choosing the director for the film. Damon responded: “When we’re talking about diversity you do it in the casting of the film, not in the casting of the show.”
In other words, diversity doesn’t matter behind the camera. (Which is, of course, bullshit.)
Diversity has been on a lot of other people’s lips, too — and for better reasons.
On Broadway, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s smash hit Hamilton has challenged the status quo by featuring black and Hispanic actors playing white historical figures — in direct contrast to Trevor Nunn’s controversial all-white casting of his War of the Roses trilogy in the UK.
The Hollywood trade publications were all over diversity during the past TV season in the US, with Shonda Rhimes leading the pack as the black, female creator of three hit shows, including two with “diverse” leads (Viola Davis in How to Get Away with Murder and Kerry Washington in Scandal).
Then there was the ratings behemoth Empire (co-created by African American Lee Daniels), as well as the Afro-centric comedy Black-ish and the Taiwanese-led Fresh Off The Boat. Not to mention the award-winning Hispanic comedy Jane the Virgin.
One of the world’s most successful film franchises The Fast and the Furious literally became a poster child for diversity when billboards for its latest incarnation featured precisely one Caucasian (the late Paul Walker) among a cast that included a mixed race leading man (Vin Diesel), two African Americans (Tyrese Gibson and Ludracis), one Latina (Michelle Rodrigeuz), an Israeli (Gael Godot), and even a Samoan (malo, Dwayne Johnson).
This past week The Hollywood Reporter pointed out that the films atop the box office for the past five weeks were all “black” films — Straight Outta Compton, which was number one for three weeks, the faith-based War Room and the thriller The Perfect Guy.
Here in New Zealand six of our top 10 box office hits of all time are “diverse” by nature, being Maori and Pacific films — the two Sione’s Weddings, Once Were Warriors and its sequel What Becomes of the Broken Hearted, plus Boy and Whale Rider. (Although only Boy and Once Were Warriors had “diverse” directors.)
The Dark Horse (starring Cliff Curtis), The Dead Lands (directed by Toa Fraser, of Fijian descent), and What We Do In The Shadows (directors Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement) are surely to join that list.
In many ways, Aotearoa has been streets ahead internationally when it’s come to diversity. Our comparatively young and multicultural population is often reflected on-screen (although behind the cameras is another story).
Even good old Shortland Street (a show I once wrote for) has featured multiple mixed race couples without making a song and dance about it, unlike its American counterparts. Not to mention a Maori CEO (Calvin Tuteao’s Victor Kahu), a Samoan in charge of the emergency department (Robbie Magasiva’s Maxwell Avia) and a Samoan head of nursing (Teuila Blakely’s Vasa Levi). These characters may have their real-life counterparts, but if they do, they’re certainly a minority.
But let’s get real. For all this talk of diversity, both here and abroad, the one place diversity doesn’t really exist — and this is crucial — is where it really counts: at the top of the management pyramid where final decisions are made, projects are green-lit and teams are put together (like Matt Damon on Project Greenlight).
Several recent articles have decried the lack of women on boards. Fair call. But the same certainly applies to minorities.
And while many people can agree that the white patriarchy has had its day, what exactly is being done to challenge it?
Playmarket, the agency that represents New Zealand playwrights, including me, recently announced something called the Inclusion Pledge, supported by Actor’s Equity and the New Zealand Writer’s Guild.
The pledge “acknowledges that we all have a role to play in creating stories that reflect the diversity of the world in which we live, and in encouraging performers from all communities. Playwrights will pledge that they will aim for inclusive writing and will include a statement alongside the character descriptions in their work to encourage diverse casting.”
In a similar vein, Creative New Zealand, the government arts funding body, has announced a Diversity Fund to “increase arts attendance and participation by Māori, Pacific and Asian communities in the Auckland Region.”
Great. But what does it really mean? The former is non-binding and the latter is simply pitching three minority groups against each other in a creative arts version of The Hunger Games. (And the lumping of all Asian cultures into one tidy sub-group is, arguably, far from “diverse”.)
Besides, both fail to acknowledge something I believe — that the so-called “diverse” work is, in fact, the new mainstream.
It’s very clear to me that the “diverse” practitioners — Maori and Pacific in particular — are the ones who are making the greatest impact on the theatre scene in New Zealand as more and more of us take charge of how we are represented. The recent triumphant season of The White Guitar, a play about a Samoan immigrant family in Christchurch, produced by the Wellington-based Pacific theatre group, The Conch, is but one example.
It is equally clear to me that nothing will really change for those of us who provide diversity in the industry until more of us are at the top of the food chain; until the racial make-up of the nation’s theatre, film and television top dogs and the boards they serve are more reflective of society as a whole.
You only have to look at the last time a Maori or Pacific Islander directed a main stage show for one of the main theatre companies. (Oh, right. That would be never.) Or the number of times that one of the big guns of New Zealand theatre has programmed a Maori or Pacific work. (Again, virtually nada.)
The alternative has been for those works to be produced and staged independently.
But I look forward to the day when the shoulders that aren’t getting tapped start to get tapped. And when those amazingly diverse plays from both here and overseas start to find their way on to our main stages.
When that glorious day comes, I’m going to send Matt Damon an invitation to opening night.
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Tena koe Victor. I feel
Tena koe Victor. I feel bolstered to continue pursuing a career in the arts after reading this. Knowing there are people like you who are not only skilled at their own craft, but aware of where changes and improvements can be made to better a wider community is both comforting and motivating. Thanks
And almost all of your
And almost all of your examples were written and directed by men. Briar Grace Smith, Niki Caro, Jane Campion, Renee Liang etc… Are all there and being fabulous, but the patriarchy is still alive and well no doubt.
Interesting, pity same can’t
Interesting, pity same can’t be said for actual NZ Media where there are hardly Pacific journalists represented. Fairfax and NZ Herald don’t tend to employ that many if any…
“That’s what people really
“That’s what people really mean when they use the term ‘diversity’. They’re talking about people who are not white, or not straight, or not in possession of a penis.”
Please don’t do this. Your piece makes very important points, but you can make those points without hurting trans women, fa’afafine, and others whose gender identities don’t match what they were assigned at birth. (Or as Statistics NZ says, “gender diverse”.) Please don’t use “possessing a penis” as a substitute for “men”.
My bad on two counts: the one
My bad on two counts: the one you mentioned but also for not mentioning Time covergirl Laverne Cox from Orange Is The New Black. #schooled.
Dear Mr Rasmussen
Dear Mr Rasmussen
Please refrain from wagging your finger at Victor or any artists who come from ethnic backgrounds and cultures, and say they have no right to declaim a lack of diversity in NZ arts because they should be grateful for funding. What preposterous nonsense. Not to mention citing something from 13 years ago. Good grief. The fact that there is a funding platform to encourage diversity shows there is an issue but it also does not indicate that because money is available, the problem is solved.
Victor’s argument is going beyond generating content, and if you had any imagination, you would see that. It is about having shared authority and distribution of power at an executive level. Not just making stories for consumption but having a say at the highest decision-making echelons in the arts.
p.s. Never try and silence an artist of colour who is commenting on the status quo by saying they should be grateful for funding. It makes you sound like an entitled old Eurocentric fart.
Very interesting read. I
Very interesting read. I agree that NZ is a leader in terms of reflecting our diverse population on stage & screen and could be better in the management part.
However, there are a few points where I think you have some the subtle yet crucial aspects of diversity. You are 100% correct to point out how lumping all our Asian cultures into one category is limiting of diversity. However, you fail to point out the same thing for our Pasifika cultures. Furthermore, the examples you provide of Pacific diversity on screen are all Samoan (exception: Toa Fraser). It is fair to say that Samoa is well represented, but I wouldn’t go as far to say that “Pacific” is well represented based on the examples you have provided here.
I find this concerning, because when you rightly point out that “more and more of us take charge of how we are represented” what I’m seeing is a growing ideal of Samoan representations of what it means to be ‘Pacific’ in NZ. This is most probably what happens when grouping our Pacific Nations together, where we are more likely to see the largest group (Samoans) well represented.
In saying that, I am immensely proud of our Samoan pioneers and trailblazers in the arts scene, and I hope I don’t come across as dismissive of their great success! I am also proud of our Tongan, Cook Is, Fiji, Niue (and the rest of us) contributions. I would love to see a more diverse presence in the higher ups too. I just wish the Pacific contribution to diversity you speak of was actually diverse in itself.
Vinaka vakalevu, well said.
Vinaka vakalevu, well said.
Most of the comments made by
Most of the comments made by the author here are valid.
However, it’s a bit rich, criticising Creative New Zealand for the Diversity fund, given this year alone, he himself has managed to tap into 3.2K to travel to Edinburgh as a Momentum delegate, supposedly because of his own Samoan heritage and the works that come out of this and 15K for a final draft of a new play: “F^&*ing Gauguin”. Hmm, best not to bite the hand that feeds you, eh?
Also, his mention of “the number of times that one of the big guns of New Zealand theatre has programmed a Maori or Pacific work” is complete bollocks. How does one explain’ his own play “My Name is Gary Cooper”, being developed and performed as a mainbill work for Auckland Theatre Company in 2007? Has he also forgotten Ranterstantrum in 2002 as part of the NZ International Arts Festival, where a Samoan protagonist is a criminal who holds a Pakeha family hostage and provides a commentary on inherent racism in New Zealand? I’m sure patrons wouldn’t have a reason to come if the protagonist was Pakeha and that Carla van Zon, the then director, would have known and banked on that.
A far more balanced argument would be for Rodger to acknowledge diversity as a currency, which he himself uses and has significantly profited from.
The thrust of Victor’s
The thrust of Victor’s argument is about those who make the decisions about what to program and fund, not about who benefits downstream. Until the boards, management and staff of arts organisations accurately reflect the demographics of our population, the risk is that a cultural/power elite controls what and who we see on stage and screen. “The media’s the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and that’s power. Because they control the minds of the masses.” ~ Malcolm X
Talofa lava Don. Wow – you
Talofa lava Don. Wow – you really know an awful lot about my work and my funding. But the thing is, Don, that’s a diversion – deliberate or not – from the core of this article . There is a reason I deliberately did not include myself or my produced work in this opinion piece – because there is not a lot to add in terms of Maori or Pacific work produced by the major theatre companies on their mainstages This piece is about the much bigger picture. It’s about how those in power are choosing – or not choosing – to grow Maori and Pacific arts and practitioners. It’s about how the racial make-up of that power base has to change. Since this piece obviously provoked a strong reaction within you I’d like to invite you to speak to a group of Maori and Pacific practitioners, Don, so you can better understand our point of view rather than doing what you have done which is effectively place me in the PI equivalent of the Uppity Negro box. Is that something that would interest you, Don?
Dear Totara Arts Organisation
Dear Totara Arts Organisation, oh sorry, “Don”. The examples you use here are so old they are frankly embarrassing. If one pakeha play was produced every seven or eight years would you think that was often enough that people should shut their mouths and be grateful? Likewise calling Victor out on the funding that he has received doesn’t invalidate his argument it just makes you look petty. Finally, accusing someone of using their heritage as currency comes pretty close to outright racism, for future reference: I’d knock that on the head.