Kimbra makes acting debut in New Zealand’s first musical movie ‘Daffodils’

Grammy-winning Australasian singer-songwriter Kimbra makes her acting debut in New Zealand’s first musical movie, Daffodils.

It began shooting last week in Wellington (and a number of other locations as Waikato and Wairarapa) for a late 2019 release.

Kimbra flew back to New Zealand after winding up tour through Europe and the United States in Los Angeles.

She returns to play in America in mid-April, just before her third album Primal Heart – initially to be released in January – now has an April 20 release.

Daffodils is based on the 2014 stage play of that name.

It’s a love story that includes a soundtrack of ‘90s NZ music including hits by Crowded House, Bic Runga, The Chills, The Mint Chicks, Dave Dobbyn and The Exponents.

Rochelle Bright, who wrote the stage play, is also adapting the film version.

Daffodils is set in the 1960s, about the love story of her parents Rose and Eric, who met in a field of daffodils (as did her grandparents) in which New Zealand music played a large role.

The lead roles are played by NZ expatriates, Rose McIver (iZombie, The Lovely Bones) and George Mason (Home and Away, Go Girls).

The film’s director is Emmy winning Wellington-based David Stubbs, whose work includes Reservoir Hill: Everyone Lies and the documentary Belief: The Possession of Janet Moses about the 2007 exorcism death of a woman from Stubbs’ home suburb Wainuiomata.

Stubbs says that recent international success for NZ films as Hunt For The Wilderpeople and the documentary Tickled has created an interest in Daffodils.

“I believe it’ll be the next NZ movie to resonate,” Stubbs says.

“As soon as I saw the stage play I fell in love with it. It was so beautiful, powerful and cinematic.

“It also says a lot about the strong story telling tradition in New Zealand music, and how it speaks for us when we can’t find the words.”

Kimbra admits that the making of Primal Heart had had its tough moments.

Last month she told Stuff,  "I fight a lot with my creative self and there can be dark moments, really dark moments.

“You have something inside you that wants to get out, but you are hitting walls time and time again.

“I just try to remind myself that every artist has been in this situation, we only see the productivity of their discography, we don’t see the left behind scribbles."

She recently issued a non-album track called ‘Hi Def Distance Romance’ for free.

She put out a call to her visually creative fans to come up with ideas which she can incorporate into the track’s video.

They can be uploaded here.

On Instagram she also posted a snippet of a tour documentary created on her European dates by her video collaborator Chester Travis.

Kimbra posted, “I have to say this is the most fun I’ve had on tour, it’s allowed me to play around with form & structure like never before & given me room to shift the set to the mood of the audience each night.”