The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls | |
---|---|
Directed by | Leanne Pooley |
Produced by | Arani Cuthbert |
Starring | The Topp Twins |
Cinematography | Leon Narbey Wayne Vinten |
Edited by | Tim Woodhouse |
Music by | The Topp Twins |
Production company | Diva Productions |
Release date |
|
Running time | 84 minutes |
Country | New Zealand |
Language | English |
The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls is a New Zealand documentary film, directed by Leanne Pooley and released in 2009. [1] The film profiles The Topp Twins, a lesbian comedy music duo from New Zealand. [1]
One of the most successful documentary films at the New Zealand box office, the film made over $1 million in its first four weeks of release. To date, it has made almost $2 million in box office sales. [2] The film was produced by Arani Cuthbert. The cinematographer was Leon Narbey. [3]
The film was also screened internationally. [4]
The film was nominated for three awards at the 2009 Qantas Film and Television Awards, for Best Feature Film – budget under $1 million, Best Original Music in a Feature Film and Best Sound Design in a Feature Film. It won the awards for Best Feature Film and Best Original Music.
At the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival, it won the People's Choice Award for Documentaries. [5]
The film was a nominee for Outstanding Documentary at the 21st GLAAD Media Awards. [6]
New Zealand cinema can refer to films made by New Zealand–based production companies in New Zealand. However, it may also refer to films made about New Zealand by filmmakers from other countries. Due to the comparatively small size of its film industry, New Zealand produces many films that are co-financed by overseas companies.
Whale Rider is a 2002 New Zealand drama film written and directed by Niki Caro. Based on the 1987 novel The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera, the film stars Keisha Castle-Hughes as Kahu Paikea Apirana, a twelve-year-old Māori girl whose ambition is to become the chief of the tribe. Her grandfather believes that this is a role reserved for males only.
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The Topp Twins are the folk singing and activist sister comedy duo of New Zealand entertainers Jools and Lynda Topp. They are known for their country music influenced style, live shows and television performances. They often perform as characters, the most notable being the roles Ken & Ken, and Camp Mother & Camp Leader.
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Leanne Pooley ONZM is a Canadian filmmaker based in Auckland, New Zealand. Pooley was born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, she immigrated to New Zealand in the mid-1980s and began working in the New Zealand television and film industry before moving to England where she worked for many of the world's top broadcasters. She returned to New Zealand in 1997 and started the production company Spacific Films. Her career spans more than 25 years and she has won numerous international awards. Leanne Pooley was made a New Zealand Arts Laureate in 2011 and an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the New Year's Honours List 2017. She is a member of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
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Rhian Sheehan is a New Zealand composer and producer born in Nelson and now based in Wellington. He is known for his fusing of orchestral chamber music and piano, with ambient electronic and post-rock cinematic atmospheres. He has also written music for film, television, video games, exhibitions, advertisements, roller coaster rides, and planetarium dome shows.
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The 2012 Sorta Unofficial New Zealand Film Awards was the first presentation for the Sorta Unofficial NZ Film Awards, a New Zealand film industry award.
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Dame Lynda Bethridge Topp, is one half of the Topp Twins, a music comedy duo of New Zealand, the other member being her twin sister Jools Topp. Lynda Topp has been singing and entertaining with her sister for decades, touring live music and comedy performances as well as TV and film. Both sisters were appointed Dames Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2018 Queen's Birthday Honours.