Captioned by Catherine de Chalain. Edited by Glenna Casalme. www.able.co.nz Captions were made possible with funding from NZ On Air. Copyright Able 2016 RELAXED MUSIC First settled by working class migrants in the 19th century, Aro Valley nurtured a reputation for shady dealings and political radicalism over the years. It can still feel a little Dickensian on a dark day. Home to students, liberals, arty types and parties where you realise just how many of your friends know each other, Aro Valley is arguably the capital's most colourful community, and home to about 3800 people. I joined the ranks of the converted when I moved here several years back, and I just love that Aro Valley is so unique. In this episode of Neighbourhood, we'll meet a Russian artist who relishes the freedom to push boundaries. I feel freedom in NZ to photograph what I want to photograph. There are no limits. Myself is the only limit. A local school embraces multiculturalism in the classroom. If they learn Mandarin, uh, I think it would be, uh, good for them to learn more about China by themselves. Yeah, if they can speak Mandarin. The owner of an Aro Valley institution lets us in on some family secrets. Later in life, didn't matter when we` Whenever we went to visit Mum and Dad, the conversation always ended up on cheese somehow and about cheese stories in NZ from a long time ago. And a man born in Iran shares his love for what he's left behind. Environment degradation has impacts not only on the nature itself but also on the communities. Um, it's` it's quite a deep, um, influence. I'm Gareth Farr, and this is my neighbourhood. CURIOUS ELECTRONIC MUSIC (PLAYS MELANCHOLIC TUNE) I'm a classical composer and percussionist, and I've written music for the NZ Symphony Orchestra many times over the years, including their concerts at the Sydney and Beijing Olympic Games. (CONTINUES PLAYING MELANCHOLIC TUNE) But perhaps less expected from a composer, I also have a drag show called Drum Drag,... BAND PLAYS PERCUSSIVE MUSIC ...which I created for my drumming alter ego, Lilith. I frequently get a look of disbelief when I tell people that in addition to composing, I'm also a drag queen. But for me, the expression of my musical self and my gay identity are one and the same. GENTLE PIANO MUSIC It's all about having an open mind. People frequently assume that they won't enjoy or relate to the unfamiliar, but time and time again, I overhear people saying things like, 'Oh, I didn't think I'd like that modern piece, but actually I really enjoyed it,' or 'I've never been to a drag show before, but I loved it!' I think that the more you find out about someone's journey, the more likely you are to find commonality in all the ways that count. GENTLE MUSIC I was born in Ahvaz, a town in south-west of Iran. When I was a kid, I remember that the region was dominantly green. It's` It's` It's the continuation of, uh, the Fertile Crescent of Mesopotamia. It's Arab-dominated region, and it's a border region between Iran and Iraq. I'm from the Arab minority in Iran. It's` It's a typical Arab culture. It's all about poetry and coffee. This photo is from the whole family in... when we moved to Tehran for a couple of years. The traditional Arab communities are` oh, definitely it's` it's tribal, uh, community, society. So different, um, tribes, um, they have` they have, kind of, like, families' hierarchies. There is this photo, which is a photo of my grandfather. He was not only just a farmer and tribal leader but he was also a politician, and he's very very ambitions as well. Two of my uncles were executed in the early, uh, days of, uh, the Iranian Revolution in 1987. It is quite dangerous for my extended family to posses those ideas and those beliefs that didn't please the` the regime. The whole family was under the spot by the regime in whatever they do, so we were not only considered as, uh, second, uh, citizen` second class citizen in the society, but also, um, deprived from` from majority of the resources in the country. So the shah of Iran was running the country on a dictatorship. And because of a lack of environmental policies... The` The region, um, that I'm coming from ` south-west of, uh, Iran ` and the centre of that region is Ahvaz. The city of Ahvaz was, um, announced, um, by... by the World Health Organisation as the most polluted city on Earth. DREAMY MUSIC And that is simply because of the oil extraction, the diversion of rivers, the drying of natural, um, swamps in the region and` and the wars, um, including the 2003 war on` uh, on terrorists. The best way to depict the situation ` I have a painting that I might be able to show. The painting was painted by a childhood friend of mine, and he painted that for me just because I asked him to depict the situation in regards to that environmental issue. In particular, what stands out for me in this, um, painting is, um... is that environment degradation has impact not only on the nature itself but also on the communities. Um, it's` it's quite a deep, um, influence. As you see that even the way of cooking is also migrating out of that region because of the environmental damage. I think this painting is my biggest treasure. My next plan is to buy a house for the painting and to install that, uh, painting in the right, uh, place in` in the house. I think it will be` it will be the predominant theme of, uh... of my lifestyle, because it definitely contains the message of my personal life, of course. CURIOUS MUSIC I started a master's degree in Strategic Studies. Coming from a troubled part of the world, it was interesting to me to answer a lot of questions that came from, uh, in my mind, throughout that, um, troubled background. I was approached by the ChangeMakers Refugee Forum. It's a prominent NGO in Wellington acting as a` as a community, um, builder for refugee communities and people from refugee backgrounds. (SPEAKS FARSI) Hi. ALL CONVERSE IN FARSI The whole philosophy behind Refugees in Business is that refugees often come in` come in` into the hosting country with a wealth of skills and knowledge from their own, um, life, uh, experience, which can be put into use perhaps, um, right away. They just need` um, need to reprocess it. My name is Hayel Kayat. I'm from Iraq. I'm here with my brother to start a business. Yeah, Ali is, uh, to help me and my brother, uh, to start the` the business. ALL CONVERSE IN FARSI It's incredible experience for me to be able of contributing to the society via this initiative. I think, um, after seven years living in NZ, um, and` and being blessed by all the blessings of this great country, I think it is the time for me to give back. GENTLE PIANO MUSIC In 1974 Aro Valley was the scene of NZ'S one and only Russian spy drama, when police staked out this park in the hopes of catching economist Bill Sutch passing classified documents to a Soviet diplomat. It all descended into farce, however, in a typical Wellington downpour, when police who were hiding in the bushes and in the toilets couldn't see what was happening or hear their radios. They missed the handover ` if there even was one ` and although Sutch was charged with passing documents to the KGB, he was acquitted. It was something of a low point in NZ-Soviet relations. Fortunately, no lasting damage was done, and now Aro Valley is providing creative and personal freedom for one young Russian expat. GENTLE GUITAR MUSIC My parents didn't know that I'm gay till I came to NZ. I wasn't brave enough to come out, so I told them that I'm gay when I met Alex. They weren't shocked. They said, 'Oh, we knew that.' As always, (CHUCKLES) parents know. We always wanted to have a house in Aro Valley and just accidentally found this piece of land for sale. There was no hesitation. We just decided to buy it, and the seller accepted our offer. A dream came true. It's` It's a really special spot for us because it's` it's this little oasis, um, right next to the central city, and yet here it is ` there's just bush and birds, um, and yet you're walking distance from the central city, and I don't know anywhere else quite like that. It's very special. Well, I started doing photography... back in Moscow. I think it was 2005. GENTLE, CAREFUL MUSIC I started doing architecture more often because there is a similarly between buildings and people. I explore individualities through the camera ` through the lens. SOFT SYNTHESIZER MUSIC I'm in Aro Valley, and I'm going to photograph this bright yellow, positive house that brights up the whole neighbourhood. I look for` for character, for individuality in the building. There should be something interesting about it, unusual, that makes it unique. I enjoy exploring Wellington and looking for new buildings, interesting angles, something that I haven't seen before, and I can imagine people will be looking at the images and thinking, 'Wow, I know this building, but I haven't seen this from this angle.' The buildings are different, and people are different, and I have this chance to discover its uniqueness through the camera. GENTLE, FLOWING PIANO MUSIC I was born on the Sakhalin Island. At that time it was Soviet Union. I left the country eight years ago, and it was OK, but since then it just became impossible for a gay person to live there, especially if growing up and wants to come out. Just became more` just unpredictable ` the reaction of the people who live there, parents. I wouldn't do it now if I'd been there. Well, it's important to have an interesting person who can tell a story on camera without saying anything, and dancers are great subject to photograph because they got these flexible, great bodies, and they can express themselves through it. In Russia I don't see that there's a chance to show this in public or in a gallery, because it's provocative and it's gay propaganda, even though there is no gay activities in the images. But any naked body will be propaganda of homosexuality. (CHUCKLES) I love these two. They look finished, especially this one. It was just a random shot. I was testing the lighting, and then when I saw the final image, I actually liked it. The idea of this project was to show movements through the hands. Cos they're dancers ` they use their hands. RISING MUSIC I feel freedom in NZ to photograph what I want to photograph, and there are no limits. Myself is the only limit. MUSIC SWELLS Yeah, my main goal is to enjoy the life and enjoy the every day ` being here, going to a cafe, having fresh bread, having some beer in the evening or wine, catch up with friends, go for a walk, photograph some beautiful buildings or people. That's the way of life for me. JACK BODY'S 'THE STREET WHERE I LIVE' I live in Durham Street. That's third on the left, up Aro Street. As you drive up Aro Street, it's a hairpin bend to the left, and then almost immediately a sharp turn to the right. Jack Body was one of NZ's most loved and influential composers. Sadly, he died last year. One of my favourite compositions of his is called The Street Where I Live, about his beautiful home here in Aro Valley. A real home of our own. Jack was one of my musical heroes, and as a very out gay man, he was always so helpful and supportive to me from when I met him in 1988. Visiting this place always bring back so many wonderful memories. POIGNANT PIANO MUSIC I love the fact that there are so many stories from the past in this area, and in moving here, I've become a part of the history of Aro Valley that goes back generations. My father was born in Rorschach in Switzerland, and my mother was born in the south of Germany. Yeah, my upbringing was probably Swiss-German. A lot of traditions from Europe that we did that, yeah, I just thought was a normal part of life. Yeah, I love baking. I always say to people` Like, 'nice' isn't this amazing, descriptive word, but baking is nice, and, yeah, I think that sort of` You know, it's a nice thing to do, and, yeah, I really enjoy it. I've got a business called Arobake, and it's situated in the Aro Valley. I've had it for 27 years now. Um, I'd been` After doing an apprenticeship in Johnsonville under a Dutch guy called Barren Babiers ` which was a really good place to do an apprenticeship ` I headed off to Switzerland and worked over there for three years. So this is a six-strand plait. I just got to get six, um... the same length strips rolled out, first of all. Sort of fairly the same through the centre, but they're just a little bit tap` tapering at the end. My dad was a cheesemaker. He had worked in the Emmental area, so he'd made Emmentaler. And, yeah, he loved making cheese. When he went to Denmark, he made cheese; when he was in America, he was working in a cheese factory. Uh, he came to NZ and was working up in Eltham, where the big cheese factory was then, too. And then later in life, didn't matter when` Whenever we went to visit Mum and Dad, the conversation always ended up on cheese somehow and about cheese stories in NZ from a long time ago. BEATBOX MUSIC We kept a few different Swiss traditions going. We had the Swiss club down at my parents' property, so there was bowling ` nine-pin bowling, a game called Jass, which is a card game a little bit like, uh, Euchre or 500 ` a special card pack that we played. Uh, what else? We used to have hot chestnuts in the autumn, and you cook them in the fireplace and then peel them open. I grew up having cheese fondue. It was sort of` I don't know about special occasions, but we just sort of` on a regular basis we had cheese fondue, and it was something the family just always loved, you know? It was sort of like a big thing. 'We're having fondue tonight.' Dad was cooking, that meant. Dad cooked quite a lot anyway, really, but he always cooked the fondue. I suppose it's a bit like Kiwi guys having` cooking the barbecue, you know? I'm using two different cheeses, so this an` this is an aged cheddar ` a Linkwater ` and then also an Emmentaler, and apart from that, there's a whole lot of wine that goes into it and then just a bit of kirsch and cornflour that I'll use to thicken it once it's, uh, melted and getting near boiling. Hey, how's it going? > Yeah, good, thank you. That's good. > Hi, I'm Nick. How are you? Oh, cool. > You always gotta have people around when you have cheese fondue, cos it sort of requires a few people. So we've got a couple of, uh, guests from overseas joining us, as well as, um, my daughter, Grace, who's living here at the moment. GUESTS: Cheers. We just, uh, put the wine and cheese in here. Just heating it on a sort of medium heat, and it's just melting it, stirring it so it doesn't stir on the bot` cook on the bottom. I'm just` cook my garlics a little bit and then I'll toss them in here, and they will carry on cooking in here, and then I thicken it with the cornflour and kirsch. INDSTINCT CHATTER Oh, bring it on. Whoo-hoo! Yum, look at that. CURIOUS MUSIC LAUGHTER, CHATTER I used to hate this when I was a kid. Seriously? > And we used to force ourselves to eat it cos we were embarrassed in front of our oma and opa. And then I think we became accustomed to it, and I can't stop eating it. (LAUGHS) CHATTER, LAUGHTER Yeah, my dad would be` Yeah, I think he'd be proud that we're still eating cheese fondue and` and remembering him, yeah. Yeah. And putting more garlic in. Yeah, and putting more garlic in. (LAUGHS) (PLAYS DELICATE TUNE) I've always loved mixing the sounds of different cultures together ` taking a symphony orchestra and adding Rarotongan log drums, kapa haka, or these instruments. They come from the traditional Balinese percussion ensemble known as the gamelan, and I've been passionate about it ever since Jack Body introduced it to me years ago. I love the unpredictable rhythms and the wild dynamic contrasts, and playing this music transports me to a another world. (PLAYS UPBEAT MUSIC) I run school workshops on these instruments, and it's wonderful to see the kids' faces light up. It's obvious that they find this music as exciting and mesmerizing as I do. I love it when education can embrace diversity in all its multicoloured glory. (BARKS) MELANCHOLIC MUSIC I was born in the Shanxi Province. It's a province in the north and middle of China. I came to NZ about five weeks ago. That's kind of part of my master's programme ` we need a one-year internship abroad as a Chinese teacher, and there are chances from Confucius Institute. They need a lot, a lot of Chinese teachers, uh, to go to different countries, teach Chinese. So I applied for NZ, yeah, and I came to Wellington. Yes. I live with Hilary and Jacquelyn ` they are two very nice and kind women ` and then two boys, Oliver and Toby, and they all play music. They can play violin, piano and the guitar. Yeah, so this is a house full of music every day, yes. And Honey` Honey the dog. (LAUGHS) How was your day, Yang? Oh, pretty good. I had three classes today. Three classes? Yes. Did you teach the kids anything new? Um, just some words of animals. Yes, I enjoy it. I think it's a good way for me to know, uh, the Kiwi life. GENTLE MUSIC I work at Te Aro School. It is a primary school, and we have about eight classes now. I work as Mandarin language assistant there, and, um, I need to help teachers and help students know more about Mandarin, about China. Normally I will teach one Mandarin class a week. Question ` (SPEAKS MANDARIN) CLASS REPEAT IN MANDARIN I think it's sweet, because teachers and the principal, they know every kid's name. Yeah, I think that's` that's really amazing, because` because the teachers and principal in China, they don't know the name of every children. CLASS SPEAK MANDARIN All the children learn Mandarin at Te Aro School, yes. And just, um, maybe little kids, uh, they only have 20 minutes for the Mandarin, but the old` senior one, they can have half an hour. If they learn Mandarin, I think it would be good for them to learn more about China by themselves. Yeah, if they can speak Mandarin. The Mandarin class is, like, really creative. Like, I know how other schools have the Mandarin teachers, but I think this wonderful l` lady actually gives people opportunity to actually teach other kids to do Mandarin, so it's` it's really good. I like the Mandarin class because you get to learn all the animals' names, and... and you get to look how they look` see how they look like. UPBEAT, GENTLE MUSIC It's a unique school because it has children from a large number of different nationalities and cultures. In fact, we've got 39 different nationalities. Because I always interview all my Year Eights just before they leave here and they talk about how wonderful it is to be such a diverse school, and, um, how lucky they are to know children or to have friends that have come from all around the world, and, um` and I think that that means that, um, students coming from Te Aro are really well-placed to be able to go out into the world and, uh, to work with a really diverse group of people. GENTLE MUSIC CONTINUES The First Language Programme is aimed for helping students from other countries improve their first language and keep learning the culture and language from their own country. Today we are making a elephant, cos it's really our cultural animal. This class is good because we don't forget our language, and they make us remember, cos we mostly speak our language and make things from our culture. The best part of my job is I can work with kids every day, because I really love kids, and I love teaching them, and students can always bring you a surprise, like their improvement of languages, or they are more confident to speak Mandarin. Yes, so I really enjoy it. MUTED PIANO MUSIC I've heard that schoolkids are now much more likely to know and accept a gay man or woman than the generation before them. This makes me so happy, because it suggests that we're becoming a much more accepting society. In my occasional homesick moments when I'm travelling overseas, I miss this beautiful green neighbourhood, with its goofy tui calls and kereru keeping me company. Aro Valley really has become my new home, and I'm so proud of its history, stories and diversity. Captioned by Catherine de Chalain. Edited by Glenna Casalme. www.able.co.nz Captions were made possible with funding from NZ On Air. Copyright Able 2016