How Far is Heaven

The Whanganui River settlement of Jerusalem/Hiruhārama hit the national spotlight when poet James K Baxter started a commune there in the early 1970s. But long before then, it was the home to an established Māori community, and the Catholic order of the Sisters of Compassion (since 1892). To make this documentary, co-directors Miriam Smith and Christopher Pryor spent a year in Jerusalem, following the lives and interactions of the nuns and the Ngāti Hau. North & South described this chronicle of co-existing contrasts — Māori and Pākehā, young and old, secular and religious — as “a cinematic treat". 

It was mind-changing. It was a completely different way to live, but it was really rewarding. I think what surprises people is that while it is isolated, it's hugely social.

– Director Miriam Smith on her year in Jerusalem, Onfilm, August 2012, page 16

Key Cast & Crew

Miriam Smith

Co-Director, Producer

Christopher Pryor

Co-Director, Cinematographer, Editor

Jane Anderson

Post-Production Coordinator

Alastair Tye Samson

Online Editor

Elisapeta Heta

Audio Post-Production

Colleen Brennan

Audio Post-Production