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Indigenous | Alien Weaponry

Alien Weaponry’s documentary hits screens next Waitangi weekend

Aotearoa’s metal band is back and ready to rock with a new documentary debuting in cinemas across the motu in the new year.

Alien Weaponry: Kua Tupu Te Ara is a personal documentary that takes watchers behind the scenes of the band’s first six years on tour across Australasia, Europe, and America, focusing on the two brothers at its core, Henry and Lewis de Jong.

Band members say they are excited the film is finally coming to Aotearoa and can’t wait to share it with their fans.

“The film captures our journey navigating the world of music, showing the highlights, the hardships, and everything in between,” one band member says.

From the release of their debut album, Tū, the feature offers insight into the impact of constant touring, their music, and their family, highlighting the challenges of teenage angst along the way.

Director Kent Belcher and producer Nigel McCulloch said it’s an intimate film that deep dives behind the scenes of the chart-topping, award-winning thrash metal band who sing in te Reo Māori.

The band burst onto the music scene with a debut album, ,in 2017, earning the prestigious Maioha Award at the APRA Silver Scrolls and the title of Best Rock Artist at the Aotearoa Music Awards. They continued to shine, winning Best Rock Artist again in 2022 after the release of their critically acclaimed second album Tangaroa.

The film has premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and the New Zealand Film Festival.