A oral history and biographical interview with Jonathan Dennis, founding Director of the New Zealand Film Archive Ngā Kaitiaki O Ngā Taonga Whitiāhua, recorded 9th and 19th November 2001.
Consists of 10 items.
Tape 1: (recorded 9 November)
Discusses his maternal and paternal family history.
Influence of D. W. Griffith's “Intolerance” (1916) and his character.
Grew closer to his father at end of his life after his mother passed away.
Tape 2:
His parents influence.
Father worked for the Tourist Hotel Corporation (THC) as hotel manager; family lived at Chateau and Hermitage; difference of his childhood because of growing up in hotels.
His relationship with his siblings; more on his childhood.
Tape 3:
Further discussion of THC hotels and childhood.
Influence of his uncle Ron O’Reilly, introduced him to film analysis.
O’Reilly was also a friend of Colin McCahon and Toss Woollaston and had their paintings in his house; profoundly affected by McCahon’s art.
Discussion of cancer and death.
More on his mother.
Tape 4:
Continued discussion of his mother; both parents acceptance of his sexuality and his relationships, partners and friends.
His childhood passion was watching films; watched films in the games room at Hermitage, mostly National Film Unit (NFU) shorts; 16mm feature films from the United States and UK were rented.
Talks about what attracted him to films; developed into a physical addiction.
Became involved with Film Society in 1970s; didn’t occur to him that it would become a career.
Dreamt of being a film star; made films; talks about torture of secondary school and boarding.
Friends formed Amamus Group, based at Unity Theatre.
Tape 5:
Discussion of what he enjoyed about theatre; left to let film work ‘unfold’.
In late 1970s became involved with Film Society, first watching then participated in business side.
Studied film at university; heard Rudall and Ramai Hayward talk at university, watched “Bush Cinderella” (1928) and “Te Kooti Trail” (1927); seeing them gave him an emotional connection to film.
Committee set up to try to form film archive in late 1970s; he was Film Society rep on it; got PEP scheme funding to work on National Film Library’s nitrate collection.
More on effect of viewing NZ films: hadn’t taken film watching personally prior to this, gave him a ‘sense of belonging’.
He needed to learn how to do film archiving; awarded an Arts Council grant for 2 years study in Europe and the United States.
Meeting with Len Lye in New York and also met Mary Meerson (widow of Heni Langlois, founder of Cinematheque Francaise); their influence on him.
Archive screenings for Maori communities; different to Pakeha response; screened “Hinemoa” at Rotorua Arts Festival in front of audience of 1000 people.
Tape 6:
More on the Rotorua screening and its effect on him; Maori response different, films came to life in front of audience, audiences talking to their people; issues of guardianship and kaitiaki of film rather than ownership; discusses ‘huge learning curve’ this involved.
Talks about how this affected Film Archive’s organisation; second half of the 1980s trying to change Archive’s focus to meet challenges in NZ and meeting needs of constituency.
Discusses some of the enemies he made, also supporters; talks about Archive’s relationship with film industry; comparison Film Archive with other international institutions.
Other people he shared his film “obsession” with.
Tape 7: (recorded 19 November)
[Witarina Harris sits with Jonathan for the remainder of the interview]
Introduces Witarina; discusses how they met, their relationship; her role in helping the Archive reconstitute itself on a bicultural basis.
More on his work in late 1980s trying to make Archive relevant in NZ context, putting bicultural structures in place at Archive.
Making of “Mana Waka” (1990).
Support from Film Archive Board during his time at Archive.
Discussion of why film archiving is contentious; tension between preservation and access to material and between images as commodities versus personal feeling towards them.
Tape 8:
Discussion about what is the value of the Film Archive’s collection, and difference of Archive’s collection to overseas institutions holdings.
Reflection on his career at the Film Archive.
Didn’t have any plans after leaving Archive, travelled overseas; feelings about NZ upon his return.
Tape 9:
Work after the film archive; books: “Film in Aotearoa New Zealand” (1992), “The silent migration: Ngāti Pōneke Young Māori Club 1937-1948” (2001); toured “Mana Waka” in the US; recordings of NZ music for the Turnbull Library.
Radio work: “Focus on Film” history of NZ film; then regular film programme on contemporary cinema, the “Film Show”; also produced “Ocean of Time” for millennium celebrations.
His personal relationships; support of parents, he didn’t have to come out to them; lonely time at the moment.
Talks about who knows him the best; current priority to spend time with people he loves.
What lies ahead in his future.
Tape 10:
Continues talking about what lies ahead in his future; nightmare of last 2-3 years, both parents passed away and his own cancer, diagnosed September 11 2001; importance of friends/whanau, but effects of his illness on other people distressing to him.
Doesn’t have a false sense of hope; refused chemotherapy and happy with palliative care; travelling to Australia the next day, testing himself.
People mentioned:
Trix Dennis; Nell O’Reilly; Pat Dennis (nee O’Reilly); Simon Dennis; Michael Dennis; Timothy Dennis; Ron O’Reilly; Colin McCahon; Paul Maunder; Sam Neil; Ramai and Rudall Hayward; George Peart; Clive Sowry; Len Lye; Mary Meerson; Witarina Harris; John O’Shea; Walter Harris; Annie Collins; Merata Mita; David Fowler; Henry Hayward; Lee Hill; Edith Kramer; Jan Bieringa; Patricia Grace; Irihapeti Ramsden; Elizabeth Alley; Ferry Hendrix; Stevan Eldred-Grigg; Fergus.