Don Charles Selwyn (22 November 1935 – 13 April 2007) was a

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

actor and filmmaker from

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

. He was a founding member of the New Zealand Māori Theatre Trust and directed the 2002 film '' Te tangata whai rawa o Weneti (The Maori merchant of Venice)'', the first

Māori language Māori (), or ('the Māori language'), also known as ('the language'), is an Eastern Polynesian language spoken by the Māori people, the indigenous population of mainland New Zealand. Closely related to Cook Islands Māori, Tuamotuan, and ...

feature film with English subtitles.

Life

Born of

Ngāti Kurī Ngāti Kurī is a Māori iwi from Northland, New Zealand. The iwi is one of the five Muriwhenua iwi of the far north of the North Island. Ngāti Kurī trace their whakapapa (ancestry) back to Pōhurihanga, the captain of the waka (canoe) Kurah ...

and Te Aupōuri descent, Selwyn grew up in

Taumarunui Taumarunui is a small town in the King Country of the central North Island of New Zealand. It is on an alluvial plain set within rugged terrain on the upper reaches of the Whanganui River, 65 km south of Te Kuiti and 55 km west of T ...

and began his professional life as a teacher. In 1967 Selwyn acted in ''The Golden Lover'' at Downstage Theatre directed by Richard Campion alongside Wi Kuki Kaa and Bob Hirini. Also on stage produced by Downstage Theatre and directed by Campion and designed by Raymond Boyce, Selwyn was in ''

Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cyp ...

'' with a cast of 17 including

Peter Vere-Jones Peter Vere-Jones (21 October 1939 – 26 January 2021) was an English-born-New Zealand actor. He was known for his collaborations with director Peter Jackson, appearing in four of his films. He was also known for starring in the New Zealand te ...

and

Elric Hooper Elric James Hooper (born 1936) is a New Zealand director and actor. He was the artistic director of the Court Theatre in Christchurch from 1979 to 2000. Education Hooper was educated at Wharenui Primary School, followed by Christchurch Boys' ...

in 1976. It was so popular it transferred to the

Opera House An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets. While some venues are constructed specifically fo ...

. He appeared in an episode of Ngaio Marsh Theatre in 1977. In 1984 he began a film and television training course for Māori and Pacific Islanders ''He Taonga i Tawhiti (Gifts from Afar)''. In 1992 Ruth Kaupua Panapa and Selwyn co-founded He Taonga Films. ''Te tangata whai rawa o Weneti (The Maori merchant of Venice)'' (2002) directed by Selwyn was the first

feature film, it was produced by He Taonga Films. He had previously staged it as a play in 1990 at the Koanga Festival. It had been translated from Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice by Pei Te Hurinui Jones in 1945. The film was produced to upskill Māori in the film industry. In 2003 at the

New Zealand Film Awards New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

Selwyn was presented with a lifetime achievement award. In 2007 the

Arts Foundation of New Zealand 'The Arts Foundation of New Zealand Te Tumu Toi is a New Zealand arts organisation that supports artistic excellence and facilitates private philanthropy through raising funds for the arts and allocating it to New Zealand artists. The concept ...

selected him for an Icon Award, which was awarded to him privately shortly before he died. In the 1999 New Year Honours, Selwyn was appointed an

Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have re ...

, for services to theatre, film and television.

Selected filmography

* '' Rangi's Catch'' (1973) as Mr. Rukuhia * '' Sleeping Dogs'' (1977) as Taupiri * '' Came a Hot Friday'' (1985) as Norm * ''

My Letter to George ''Mesmerized'' (also known as ''Shocked'' and ''My Letter to George'') is a 1985 drama film directed by Michael Laughlin and starring Jodie Foster, John Lithgow and Michael Murphy.Ed. Scott Murray, ''Australia on the Small Screen 1970–1995'', ...

'' (1986) as Joseph * '' The Last Tattoo'' (1994) as Bill Davin * ''Te tangata whai rawa o Weneti (The Maori merchant of Venice)'' (2002) - director

References

External links

* 1935 births 2007 deaths New Zealand male Māori actors New Zealand film directors New Zealand male film actors Indigenous filmmakers in New Zealand Te Aupōuri people Ngāti Kurī people Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit People from Taumarunui Māori-language film directors {{Māori-bio-stub