What We Do in the Shadows

Premiered at the Sundance Film Festival 2014

European premiere at the Berlin Film Festival 2014

In cinemas in:

New Zealand: 19 June, 2014; online: 31 October, on DVD: 26 November, 2014
Australia: 4 September, 2014; on DVD & Blu-ray: 7 January, 2015
Germany: 30 October, 2014
UK and Ireland: 21 November, 2014; DVD & Blu-ray: 13 April, 2015
Sweden: 12 December, 2014
The Netherlands: 18 December, 2014
Japan: 24 January, 2015
Norway: 30 January, 2015
USA and Canada: 13 February, 2015; DVD & Blu-ray: 19 May, 2015
Poland: 27 February, 2015
Russia: 26 March, 2015

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2013 (86 minutes)

Cast and Credits

Directors: Taika Waititi, Jemaine Clement
Screenwriters: Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi
Producers: Taika Waititi, Chelsea Winstanley, Emanuel Michael
Principal Cast: Jemaine Clement (Vladislav), Taika Waititi (Viago), Jonathon Brugh (Deacon), Cori Gonzalez-Macuer (Nick), Stu Rutherford (Stu), Ben Fransham (Petyr), Jackie van Beek (Jackie)

Synopsis
Consider the living quarters of vampires and stodgy old castles in Transylvania might come to mind. But these aren’t your typical bloodsuckers. Viago (379 years old), Deacon (183 years old), Vladislav (862 years old), and Peter (8,000 years old) have chosen to share a flat in Wellington, New Zealand. Unfortunately for them, it’s hard to make new friends due to their constant thirst for blood. Without any mortal chums left to invite them in to all of the hip establishments around town, they’ve lost touch with the current social scene. Can these creatures of the night put aside their differences as roommates and adapt to modern society?

In What We Do in the Shadows, frequent collaborators Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement share writing, directing, and acting duties—all with precise comedic timing. The end result is a hysterical mockumentary that unearths a secret, supernatural society where friendship and camaraderie are just as important as feasting upon the flesh of mortals.

– O.J.

About the Directors
Hailing from the tropical continent of New Zealand, Oscar-losing director Taika Waititi grew up just like the title character in the original Conan. This will be his third feature to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. His first was Eagle vs. Shark in 2007, followed by BOY in 2010. He counts among his friends folks such as Stu, Toby, Warner, Ross, Dustin, and Niles. He also invented the sideways “Whatchoo talkin’ ’bout?” look.

Reclusive actor/director/MMA star Jemaine Clement lives in the mountains of New Zealand with his wife and 16 cats. He was once a business mogul in the ruthless door-to-door orange-juice-selling trade; however, the whole thing came tumbling down in 2006, and he was tragically reduced to having his own HBO show, performing sell-out concerts with his band, Flight of the Conchords, and acting in giant movies like Men in Black 3.

Trailer and #FangFriday Teasers

Awards:

The Rialto Channel New Zealand Film Awards 2014 – Best Self Funded Film, Best Supporting Actress (Jackie Van Beek), Best Sound (Simon Riley, Mike Hedges & Tim Chaproniere) & Best Production Design (Ra Vincent)
Hawaii International Film Festival 2014 – Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature
Toronto International Film Festival 2014 – Grolsch People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award
Stanley Film Festival 2014 – Audience Award
Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival 2014 – RTS Audience Award
Full Moon – Horror & Fantasy Film Festival 2014 in Transylvania – Best Film and Audience Award
SITGES Film Festival of Catalonia 2014 – Jury’s Special Mention and Grand Audience Award: Best Feature Film
Monsters of Film 2014 in Stockholm – Audience Award
Warsaw Film Festival 2014 – Audience Award
Celluloid Screams Sheffield Horror Film Festival 2014 – Best Feature Award
San Sebastian Horror & Fantasy Film Festival 2014 – Audience Award
Night Visions Film Festival 2014 in Helsinki – Audience Award
Virginia Film Festival 2014 – Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature
Leeds International Film Festival 2014 – Audience Award for Best Film
Turin Film Festival 2014 – Best Screenplay Award
Outlier Film Festival 2014 – Best Feature Award
2014 NZ Comedy Guild Awards – Best NZ On-Screen Comedy Performance (Cori Gonzalez-Macuer), The Kevin Smith Memorial Cup for Best Artist Achievement (Cast & Crew)
Melbourne International Film Festival 2014 – In Top 5 People’s Choice Awards Winners
Australian International Movie Convention 2014 – Award for Highest Grossing New Zealand Film at the Australasian Box Office Achievement Awards