Festival: 2023 Takapuna Winter Lights
Date: 27 – 30 July 2023
Media: Digital Animation | 03:01:00, 30.00fps, 1920×1080 + Digital Soundscape
Site: Hurstmere Road, Takapuna, Auckland, New Zealand
Visionscape: ©2023 by Daniel K. Brown
Soundscape: ©2023 by Mark K. Johnson
Waiata a nga manu | Birds Song was specially commissioned for the Takapuna Winter Lights Festival, on Hurstmere Road in Takapuna, from 27-30 July 2023. Waiata a nga manu–which means “Birds Song” in te reo Māori–showcases the magical world of New Zealand’s colourful birdlife. And who better to provide the vision for this world than pre-school children from Campbell’s Bay Early Learning Centre (3-5 years old) and Takapuna Primary School (5-10 years old). The world of Waiata a nga manu continually changes, bringing the children’s drawings to life in one magical forest realm after another.
As a way to give back to the Takapuna community, the starting point for Waiata a nga manu was about finding a way to enable Takapuna’s youngest children to participate in the magical realm of Winter Lights, not just as visitors but as contributing artists. Imagine the thrill of a pre-schooler seeing their own drawings brought to life in dazzling arrays of animated colour! The music and the magical realm of the forest for Waiata a nga manu were composed and created by Mark K. Johnson, while the animations of the children’s drawings were created by Daniel Brown. The vision for Waiata a nga manu has been proudly handed over to the sense of wonder and magic held by the youngest members of our Auckland community.
