David Bowie: Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence

Back in 1982, David Bowie was in NZ filming Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence - an acclaimed feature that explores desire, death, and guilt in a World War II Japanese prisoner of war camp. From Japanese art cinema star Nagisa Oshima, David Bowie was cast as a defiant captive opposite fellow music star Ryuichi Sakamoto as a conflicted camp commander. The film was mainly shot in Auckland and partly funded by Broadbank during the tax shelter 80s; cast and crew Kiwi connections included ex-Broadbank employee Larry Parr as associate producer, 1st AD Lee Tamahori, and actor Alistair Browning as a PoW.