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“Very entertaining, often hilarious no-budget mock documentary about a fictional land rights claim.” - NZ Herald The 2005 discovery of a cannonball buried for 138 years in a paddock throws Waimate into turmoil. It's all the Maori locals need to confirm their long-held belief that they were forcibly removed from their tribal lands in a bloody battle in 1866. The hotly contested claim eventually ends up in the District Court and on the lens of cameraman Dave who captures all the townspeople's arguments, frauds and forgeries in a cinema verité style reminiscent of Kenny and the work of Christopher Guest. The Waimate Conspiracy brings much levity to a subject not usually associated with comedy.
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D/S Stefen Lewis P Stefen Lewis, Beverley Harris, Quentin Wilson WS Stefen Lewis TD digibeta/2006/101mins