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Shot by photographer Brian Brake as a National Film Unit tourism promo, Snows of Aorangi surveys New Zealand's mountain landscapes. Brake captures stunning imagery: ethereal ice forests, lightning storms, volcanic craters, glaciers, avalanches, kea. Three skiers are mesmerising as they scythe downhill from Almer Hut: "for a little while they've given themselves to the rhythm of sky and earth" runs the narration, which was written by poet James K Baxter. Snows of Aorangi was the first New Zealand film to compete for an Oscar, nominated in the Best Short Subject (Live Action) category in 1959.
Related images
Brian Brake filming Snows of Aorangi (1955), Tasman Glacier, 1953.
Taken by JD Knowles. © Brian Brake Estate/Museum of Te Papa Tongarewa.
