Oscar Kightley, Shimpal Lelisi and Iaheto Ah Hi Sione's 2: Unfinished Business

Oscar Kightley, Shimpal Lelisi and Iaheto Ah Hi Sione's 2: Unfinished Business Interview

Cast: Oscar Kightley, Robbie Magasiva, Shimpal Lelisi
Director: Simon Bennett
Genre: Drama, Comedy
Rated: M
Running Time: 92 Minutes

Synopsis: Five years ago our heroes the Duckrockers thought they had figured it all out - they had found themselves girlfriends to take to Sione's wedding and the future was looking bright: Michael had come to accept that commitment wasn't for him and he was always going to fancy white girls; Albert had finally hooked up with his co-worker Tania; Stanley, always the weird one, had managed to find himself a nice girl one of the catering staff from the wedding; and Sefa had even got the courage to propose to his long term girlfriend, Leilani. And Bolo? Well, apparently his name is actually Paul.

Fast-forward five years and things haven't quite gone as the boys might have planned: Albert is now married to Tania and they are living in suburbia, both working in insurance and also trying (unsuccessfully) to have a baby; Sefa and Leilani are still together and now have two kids although despite Sefa's proposal, they're still not married. And while Sefa's business is falling apart, Leilani seems to be living life to the full; Stanley is now a trainee Deacon in the Future Church; Michael has moved to Australia but the boys don't hear from him often; and Bolo has thrown in his job with Sefa and taken up work with Sione, Michael's younger brother.

Growing up appears to be driving the Duckrockers apart but when they're confronted with one of life's unexpected turns and Bolo goes missing, their Minister once again brings them together and sends them on a quest. Their mission: to find Bolo. Where do you start when you are looking for this one Samoan in the worlds largest Polynesian city?

As they set off on the physical search for Bolo, each of the Duckrockers is also on a personal journey of sorts. But of course, the Boys being the Boys, the way they deal with things can only go wrong.

Release Date: March 1st, 2012

Interview with Oscar Kightley

Question: Tell us about Albert in this movie.

Oscar Kightley: When we met him the first time around, Albert was one of those dudes who needed information in triplicate in order to know something and he also had to be told what he was feeling. So he achieved quite a breakthrough at the end of Sione's Wedding in that he came to the realisation he was in love with Tania. And even better was that she was in love with him! But when we meet him in this film, he's discovered the fact that actually having the partner isn't the thing, there's all that complicated stuff after it which can get in the way of things running smoothly. So, when we catch up with him in this film, Albert is in a place where he thinks he should have it all sussed out but he can't understand why he's not happy. He gets to wear a tie to work, he's middle management, he's married to the woman he loves but despite everything he's unfulfilled. And the trouble is, he doesn't know why he's unfulfilled and it's making him very grumpy and frustrated.


Question: How did you find the Sione's 2: Unfinished Business shoot?

Oscar Kightley: Fun is such as inadequate word… The thing is, all of us actors are friends so even if we weren't working together, we would probably see each other all the time. So being able to get everyone back together and adding some new friends to come and hang out with on this project - it was mad fun. To be honest, the first film was kind of freaky and it was a first for some of us so we were just scared of messing up and we wanted to do a good job. But having done it once and having the chance to do it again, we knew we needed to make the most of this experience. I'd say it was more fun than the first film because we knew the fun we were having and we knew also the kind of work we needed to be doing.


Question: How easy was it for everyone to slip back into that groove?

Oscar Kightley: One of the cool things about it being such a short process in getting Sione's 2 up and running is that we didn't have too much time to think about it. So pretty much from day one of shooting it was like 'Oh, that's right - that's who we are'. We all just fell into it which was great. We are fortunate enough to have all been friends and to have worked together for a long time and so we had that 'thing'…the French call it complicité. Once we got onto set it was just like 'what are our lines?' and then it all just came back and it was so easy slipping back into character. It was funny to see those characters again and the first time I saw any pictures I was like 'oh those fools!' so it was a bit of a crack up.

Interview with Shimpal Lelisi

Question: What was your initial reaction when you heard there was going to be a sequel to Sione's Wedding?

Shimpal Lelisi: My first thought was 'Wow! Wow, it's great…because hardly any sequels get made here in Aotearoa'.


Question: Where's your character when we meet him again in Sione's 2: Unfinished Business?

Shimpal Lelisi: In Unfinished Business, it's been about five years since we last saw everyone and Sefa and Leilani have got two children but they're still not married. Lani's becomehighly professional and Sefa's gone in the other direction and is unemployed - he had a falling out with his cousin, Bolo, and he's generally not in a very good place. I think the big question in Sefa and Leilan's relationship is how come they're not married yet - especially after the first movie ended so well for them both.


Question: What was it like working with the other cast again?

Shimpal Lelisi: It's just like hanging out with your mates really, and getting to work on a really good movie as well. So it's fun. I guess it was challenging in that everyone has come so far work-wise since that first film so everyone bought their A-game to the shoot.


Question: How did this shoot differ from the previous film?

Shimpal Lelisi: Shooting Sione's 2 was different to Sione's Wedding in that you had to keep in mind your character's journey in the time between the two films. Sefa's story required a lot more than the first film because we know the character's history, so that was a bit of a challenge for me.


Question: What was the highlight of the shoot for you?

Shimpal Lelisi: I think the highlight for me as an actor trying to survive in New Zealand, was getting to act every day for six weeks. Waking up every morning and going "Hey, I get to act today" was awesome. And of course working with your friends on such a good project was pretty exciting.

Interview with Iaheto Ah Hi

Question: What did you think when you heard there was going to be a Sione's 2?

Iaheto Ah Hi: I didn't really believe it at first. And then there were all the jokes and the quips from people saying "Oh, Sione's Divorce - when's that coming out?". But when I read the script, I was really excited.


Question: What did you think of the script when you first read it?

Iaheto Ah Hi: I laughed, it was so funny! It was solid, it was moving, but more than anything I just thought it was hilarious - I was laughing out loud while I was reading it.


Question: How did your experience on Sione's 2 differ from doing the first film?

Iaheto Ah Hi: Besides age, I was a lot more appreciative and a lot more relaxed. The first time was scary because it was a film and my experience had been in theatre - it was new territory for all of us, really. So this time around it felt a lot more relaxed and more focused.


Question: What was it like working with the director, Simon Bennett?

Iaheto Ah Hi: I've worked with Simon Bennett before in theatre on A Midsummer Night's Dream more than 10 years ago. He's an awesome director in that I've always thought of him as an actor's director. He went through Toi Whakaari and he understands that processes that actors go through. He's right into the words of the script. And through the dialogue, through the characters and through the story, there is care and a spirituality that comes through. So it was a joy working with him again in this medium.


Question: What was the highlight of the shoot for you?

Iaheto Ah Hi: The highlight of the shoot for me was the first day and [Spiritual and Cultural Advisor] Reverend Mua's prayer and seeing everyone in the circle and thinking "Wow, this is really happening!"


Question: How do you feel about the expectation around Sione's 2?

Iaheto Ah Hi: Recently, I was at the mall in Manukau City and I was texting my partner and a group of three guys walked past and I could hear "Yeah, nah…that's him. That's him!" And then one of them approached me and said: "Look, dude - I'm a big fan of Stanley's… Sione's Wedding is my favourite movie." That movie was nearly six years ago but there's obviously people out there that love the movie and that's why we wanted to do it all over again.