Existence

Heavy symbolism, moody Makara skies, indecipherable dialects — what’s not to love?

– Writer Grant Smithies in The Sunday Star-Times, 26 May 2013

In the film, some inhabitants had been isolated from the main population for several generations. The language was plausible because the film involved a catastrophe that could have an impact on speech, Dr [Martin] Paviour-Smith said.

– Massey University linguistics lecturer Martin Paviour-Smith talks about the dialect developed for the film, The Dominion Post, 27 April 2011

The film required a very distinctive aesthetic — one that required a high level of design work and the ability to film in the most cinematic yet inhospitable locations we could find, with a cast who could turn largely silent characters into compelling, empathetic individuals that an audience would stay with for the length of the story.

– Co-producer Mhairead Connor on some of the challenges of making Existence, Onfilm, February 2012, page 10 (volume 29, number 1)