Black Sheep

An irreverent thrill ride into the dark heart of rural New Zealand that charts a battle between the forces of science and the guardians of nature, Jonathan King’s debut feature is a high-spirited take on the question that has puzzled New Zealand for over one hundred years. Are we forever to be known as a small isolated nation dominated by sheep? It is, as King says, “the New Zealand story that had to be told.”

A flock of over one thousand animals, a small number of trained sheep and animatronic puppet creatures, created by world renowned Weta Workshop, were captured in camera to bring the rampant underbelly of ovine rage to life on the big screen.

Inspired by Peter Jackson’s grand tradition of Kiwi splatter using physical effects, King’s collaboration with Richard Taylor and his Academy Award-winning team at Weta Workshop lies at the heart of the film. Devising everything from conceptual art to buckets of gore, sculpted body parts and sophisticated prosthetic makeups, a highly experienced crew came together to build King’s distinctive vision of Kiwi bucolic bliss turned monstrously on its head.