New Zealand film “Billy T” Wins Award at International Premiere

New Zealand film “Billy T: Te Movie” won the Audience Choice Award for Best Documentary at the Balinale Film Festival in Bali . The screening on Thursday 17 November at the Balinale Film Festival was the film’s international premiere.

Entertainment legend Billy T James passed away in 1991 after a long and successful career on stage, television and film. Directed by Ian Mune, the film documents Billy T’s life both on- and off-screen.

Ambassador David Taylor introduced the film screening on 17 November and later observed that “Billy T James was a comic genius well-loved by several generations of New Zealanders. I’m delighted that the Indonesian audience at the Balinale Film Festival was the first outside New Zealand to experience his unique humour in this moving documentary.”

The film’s director, Ian Mune has written and directed some of New Zealand ’s most well-known films and television shows, including “Gloss,” “Goodbye Pork Pie,” “Came a Hot Friday” and “What Becomes of the Broken Hearted.”

The film was screened at the Balinale Film Festival thanks to the support of the New Zealand Film Commission and the New Zealand Embassy.

To learn more about Billy T James and see clips of his television and film appearances, follow this link.   For more information on the Balinale Film Festival, see its website.