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Memorial Ave nears completion Artist's impression
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wet winter has not delayed work on the $195 million Christchurch Southern Motorway – Stage 2 project, with more than 300,000 cubic metres of earth moved, two new local roads built and the first of eight bridges almost complete. Principal Project Manager Geoff Griffiths says people can expect to see more changes over the coming months as work ramps up. “Recently, two 180-tonne cranes put the final four ‘Super-T Beams’ that make up the Main South Road Bridge into place,” Mr Griffiths says. The bridge designers were inspired by the vertical power of the Southern Alps and the curves of the braided rivers, unique to the Canterbury Plains. Their inspiration also came from the speed and adventure of travel. Recogising the unique airport location, the finely tuned structure refers to both the manufacture and movement of aircraft. The project aims to capture the unique moment of arrival and departure from the city of Christchurch. This area of Canterbury has always been a place that
people passed through, whether starting on their OE, going to serve their country or traveling to gather kai on the banks of the Avon River. These two arches symbolise meetings and travel, they represent the coming together of cultures. “Next, the structure, which will take Main South Road traffic up and over the motorway, is made up of 16 locally made precast beams, which range from 30 to 35 metres long and weigh up to 68 tonnes each.” Along with the Main South Road Bridge, the CSM2 team have also started constructing the Waterholes Road and Trent Road bridges and built two new local roads - Tiptree Lane and Manion Road. “These new roads will give people access to their homes and local businesses, and in the case of Manion Road, allow the CSM2 team to carry on with work to create the motorway into a four-lane road from Weedons Road towards Curraghs Road,” Mr Griffiths says. “Meanwhile, at the city end of the project, John Paterson
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Drive is being realigned to join with Halswell Junction Road. This work will continue until the end of the year when the new alignment is expected to open to traffic.” Mr Griffiths says people travelling around the Selwyn District, near the project, should expect detours and road closures at times as work on the project continues. “Traffic will be closely monitored to try to reduce disruption and delays, however people should plan ahead and allow extra travel time as work continues on the CSM2,” he says. “We would also like to remind people to obey the traffic management signs. The speed restrictions and road closures are in place for your safety as well as the safety of our crews.” The Christchurch Southern Motorway (Stage One, completed, and Stage Two, underway) is expected to halve travel time between Rolleston and Christchurch at peak times from 30 minutes to 15 and reduce fatal and serious crashes by 40 per cent. Stage Two is on track to be open to traffic in early 2020.
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Margaret Mahy’s novel, The Changeover, now a movie is thrilling Just saw The Changeover Movie which is a darker grittier Twilight with creep factor - Keeping Up With NZ, Twitter
CONTACT EDITOR Christine Deflice chrissymt@xtra.co.nz
Incredible, riveting film! Well done Miranda Harcourt and Stuart Mckenzie - you captured the essence of the book in a contemporary way, and I love that it is set in post quake Christchurch too. Go see it when it’s out and take the kids! (12+ I think) - Sarah Catherall, Journalist
COPY Jenafor Rollins jenaforrollins@gmail.com DESIGN Denise Crawford FEATURE & SUPPLEMENTS MANAGER Jenny Wright - 03 364 7446 jenny@starmedia.kiwi PUBLISHER Star Media The Christchurch Star Company Ltd Level 1, 359 Lincoln Road, Addington Christchurch PO Box 1467, Christchurch 8140
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edia and audience reviews are claiming Margaret Mahy’s supernatural thriller, The Changeover is creepy, thrilling and riveting. The award winning teen novel set in Gardendale, was inspired by Christchurch’s very own Bishopdale and is captivating test audiences and media around the country. The motion picture directed and produced by husband and wife duo Miranda Harcourt and Stuart McKenzie, loved the novel so much, they felt compelled to bring it to the big screen.
25 at the Isaac Theatre Royal on Gloucester Street and opens countrywide on September 28. Christchurch theatres showing the film include Hoyts Riccarton, Hoyts Northlands, Reading at The Palms and the Hollywood. Take your friends and family to see the film adaptation of one of New Zealand’s award winning authors. Rate it for yourself. Watch for the film countdown and be a part of the contests and treasure hunt.
Mark your calendar for September 28 and the opening date of The Changeover. You won’t want to miss it. It’s highly suggested to bring a friend, just in case you need someone The cast includes Timothy Spall (Wormtail to scream with. in Harry Potter) who plays villain Carmody Braque and is mesmerising. Heart throb, Nicholas Galitzine (Handsome Devil and Sixteen year-old Laura Chant lives with her High Strung) plays Sorensen Carlisle teamed mother and four-year-old brother Jacko in a with New Zealand newcomer Erana James low-rent suburb on the edge of earthquake(Ngati Whatua Orakei, Waikato Tainui), who scarred Christchurch, New Zealand. Laura plays protagonist Laura Chant, the big sister is drawn into a supernatural battle with an willing to give her life for her little brother. ancient spirit who attacks Jacko and slowly The cast is rounded out by Lucy Lawless, drains the life out of him as the spirit becomes (Xena Warrior Princess) and Melanie Lynsky ever younger. Laura discovers her true identity and the supernatural ability within (Heavenly Creatures and 2 ½ Men). her, and must harness it to save her brother’s The world premiere will be held September life.
Synopsis
What a powerhouse film! Totally knocked my socks off. Performances, freaky dark story, Christchurch, and man that soundtrack!! - Audience, Wg Fab film, so different from anything I’ve seen in NZ cinema… shot! - Audience, Akld
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Husband and wife team co-direct The Changeover Stuart and Miranda Harcourt
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read Margaret Mahy’s supernatural teen thriller, The Changeover, for the radio the year after it was first published in 1984and fell in love with the story. Margaret is the godmother of the young adult or YA genre and authors such as Stephenie Meyer of the Twilight series are grateful for her pioneering efforts.” Co-director Miranda Harcourt shares with excitement in her voice. “Stuart read the book as well and we both knew that one day we wanted to adapt the novel for the big screen. Six years ago, we secured the rights and we have now nearly completed our goal. The film preview screenings have shown we achieved our desire of creating goosebumps, tension and a quest for the audience to think about supernatural possibilities.” Harcourt added. “This novel has inspired so many young
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adult writers. Margaret was a leader in the teen genre, especially with this award winning book, The Changeover. It broke barriers and was a first to showcase a female teen lead with Polynesian ancestry, as Margaret puts it. This character Laura Chant is a trailblazer. A protagonist who moves the story along and we have had an overwhelmingly positive response from the screenings, which are being embraced by audience and cinema goers across the country.” “This is the first time Miranda and I have directed together after all these years of working together, but we felt compelled to share this project. We wanted to make a film with the backdrop of where I grew up. Besides, we work very well together and can read each other. The cast and crew felt confident there would be no disagreements
or dissension on the set. There wasn’t and we didn’t have any major concerns off the set, either. We shared our vision and know each other so well that we can always communicate and make it work. We know our strengths and expertise. We complement each other. It made for a full experience.” Stuart added. Stuart McKenzie, who grew up in Bishopdale where Margaret set her story, adapted the screenplay from the multi award winning novel by the loved and admired Canterbury author. “Christchurch is a main character in the film, with its unique vibe and provides a valuable backdrop for seismic shifts in the characters evolution. Coming home to film in the city that I love was classic.”
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UC Academic’s new book explores women in horror films
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pop culture expert’s new book is set to make a unique contribution in the field of horror scholarship by exploring the “privileged place” that women hold in the horror film genre.
A lecturer in English and Cultural Studies in the University of Canterbury’s College of Arts, author Dr Erin Harrington is an expert in ‘gynaehorror’, a term she coined and which is the focus of her new book, Women, Monstrosity and Horror Film (Routledge, 2017). Covering topics ranging from “psychobiddies, grande dames and horrific harridans” to virgins and vagina dentata, the academic book makes a unique contribution to the study of women in horror film specifically, while providing new insights in the broader area of popular culture, gender and film philosophy. Dr Harrington describes gynaehorror as horror films concerned with all aspects of female reproductive horror, from reproductive and sexual organs, to virginity, pregnancy, birth, motherhood and menopause. “Think classic films like Rosemary’s Baby or The Brood or even the Alien series, or more recent films like The Witch and The Babadook. Horror films are a great social barometer as they engage with and often directly invoke culturally specific and contemporaneous fears and anxieties,” she says.
· The intersection of horror, monstrosity and sexual difference; · The relationships between normative female (hetero)sexuality and the twin figures of the chaste virgin and the voracious vagina dentata; · Embodiment and subjectivity in horror films about pregnancy and abortion; · Reproductive technologies, monstrosity and ‘mad science’; · The discursive construction and interrogation of monstrous motherhood; and · The relationships between menopause, menstruation, hagsploitation and ‘abject barren’ bodies in horror. Dr Harrington’s book not only offers a feminist interrogation of gynaehorror, but also a counterreading of the gynaehorrific, that both accounts for and opens up new spaces of productive, radical and subversive monstrosity within a mode of representation and expression that has often been accused of being misogynistic.
“Engaging with these films, as with other forms of popular culture, can help us understand and interrogate taken-for-granted ideas about what it is women ‘should’ do and be.” Published in the Routledge series Film Philosophy at the Margins, the book features an in-depth analysis of the portrayal of women in horror films from the 1960s until the present day. “Women occupy a privileged place in horror film. Horror is a space of entertainment and excitement, of terror and dread, and one that relishes the complexities that arise when boundaries – of taste, of bodies, of reason – are blurred and dismantled,” Dr Harrington says.
Dr Harrington’s research and academic work focuses on horror, embodiment, popular and visual culture, and sex and gender, and she also has a particular interest in theatre, criticism and dramaturgy. She has written for a range of literary and academic publications, art catalogues, and popular media outlets, and she regularly appears as a speaker and panellist. Women, Monstrosity and Horror Film by Erin Harrington, published by Routledge, 2017: 288pp.
For further information please contact: Margaret Agnew, Senior External Relations Advisor, University of Canterbury at 369 3631 or Some of the themes explored in Women, Monstrosity and Horror Film include: margaret.agnew@canterbury.ac.nz
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University of Canterbury welcomes record numbers of postgraduates
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he University of Canterbury has welcomed more than 1000 fulltime equivalent students in masters’ programmes and record numbers of doctoral students in 2017, with over 700, with more expected to enrol before the end of the year. The University of Canterbury (UC) offers a wide range of postgraduate qualifications through world-class resources and exciting, hands-on research opportunities, according to Vice-Chancellor Dr Rod Carr who welcomed news of the record numbers of postgraduate students. “It’s a dynamic environment in which to advance yourself learn alongside academics and students from more than 100 nations, join a vibrant students’ association, and get involved in any of 140 clubs.” Events are held throughout the year to encourage collaboration and networking between the postgraduate and UC staff community, including: University of Canterbury Postgraduate Information Evening: Wednesday 20 September, 5pm-7.30pm, University of Canterbury Engineering Core, 69 Creyke Road, Ilam, Christchurch Thinking of returning to study? Want a change of career or need to upskill to get ahead? Come to the UC Postgraduate Information Evening on Wednesday 20 September, and learn about UC’s flexible postgraduate study options at the expo and information sessions. You can get an overview of flexible study options and how to finance, structure and plan your postgraduate study. Chat with people from different departments and support services about your
specific study options and how to balance study with your lifestyle and other commitments.
GradFest
GradFest is an annual, week-long event of lectures and workshops for postgraduate thesis writers. At GradFest, held from 30 October to 3 November this year, students can learn about the latest research trends, develop new skills to enhance their study, and have the opportunity to network with other postgraduate students. GradFest brings together different departments at UC such as the Postgraduate Office, Academic Skills Office, Library, E-Learning, Careers and Academic Services Group to share their expertise with postgraduate students on subjects such as Understanding the thesis journey, Applying for ethical approval, Smart tools and technologies for research, The publication process, Thesis structure and planning, and Writing a coherent thesis. (Due to its popularity GradFest was also held in May this year.)
UC PGSA - Just Write workshop
In early September, the UC PGSA (Postgraduate Students’ Association) hosted the Just Write workshop; a chance for postgraduate students to get together and ‘just write’. The free annual event focuses on removing the barriers that prevent students from writing and provides inspiration to help polish chapters and papers for submission. It’s a great opportunity to network with other postgraduate students, collaborate and try out new ideas. The event also includes seminars throughout the day to help students produce quality research outputs.
Thesis-in-three competition
The Thesis-in-three competition challenges postgraduate students to explain their research in three minutes, accompanied by one slide. The competition aims to teach effective communication techniques between academics and those outside their field of study. It also promotes collaboration and increases funding and employment opportunities. Sponsored by the Dean of Postgraduate Research each year, Thesis-in-three students first compete in College competitions, vying for a place in the UC-wide final. The UC final is held in August and competitors get the opportunity to compete at the international Three Minute Thesis (3MT) event in September. The winners of 2017’s Thesis in Three UC final are: · 1st: Philipp Sueltrop from UC Engineering ($5000 prize) · 2nd: Jacq Jones from UC Arts ($2000 prize) · 3rd: Jess McHale from UC Science ($1000 prize) Philipp, who is from Germany and studying for his PhD in Electrical and Electronic Engineering, will represent UC at the 2017 Asia-Pacific 3MT Finals, held at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia, on Friday 29 September 2017. He will compete against representatives from 55 universities across New Zealand, Australia and Southeast Asia. Find more about postgraduate options on UC’s website: www.canterbury.ac.nz/ postgraduate/ For further information please contact: Margaret Agnew, Senior External Relations
Advisor, University of Canterbury Phone: +64 3 369 3631 | Mobile: +64 275 030 168 | margaret.agnew@canterbury.ac.nz Tweet UC @UCNZ and follow UC on Facebook
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Youth mental health hot topic
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urrent Canterbury youth mental health statistics have the Labour party swinging into action stating they will invest millions into providing much needed services and support for Cantabrian children and teens in the aftermath of the earthquakes.
• Chronic or traumatic stress includes children living in environmental situations including, school, home, weather or geographic conditions, peer pressure, relationships, their future, monetary or social conditions such as neglect, abuse, or maltreatment. Chronic stress not only feels bad, but leads to poor immune system functioning, creating vulnerability to Since 2011 there had been a 73 per cent increase in children stress-related health conditions, mental health disorders and and young people seeking mental health services in Canterbury. school underachievement. Principals from across the city have been dealing with children with extreme trauma, anxiety and suicidal intent. Their stories are distressing stories.
What children and teens are anxious and stressed about
“Funding hasn’t kept pace with what’s required down here. Young kids can stress about normal developmental fears such We’ve been trying to raise the profile of Canterbury’s health issues within Parliament for quite some time.” Ardeen stated in as strangers, new places, animals, or changes in their family or routine. Unpredictable events such as the loss of pet or family a recent trip to Christchurch. member. Older kids and teens can stress about appearance, peer status, social and romantic relationships, academic performance and college acceptance. Anxiety and stress are often used interchangeably. Both are reactions involving thoughts, emotions, and physiological responses such as a change in heart rate. Anxiety can be defined Emotionally, children of all ages may show an increased as the anticipation of a perceived threat. Stress is the natural sense of fragility in their feelings. Vulnerable and negative human response to resilience, which is defined as sustaining a emotions may be closer to the surface like increased sensitivity, healthy function despite negative experiences and setbacks. impatience, anger or crying. Behaviourally, there may be a
Defining stress, anxiety and resilience
How to know if your child is stressed?
Types of stress
• Experiencing anxiety and stress over new experiences is normal and expected. For children, this might include staying with a babysitter for the first time, giving a speech in class or taking a driver’s license test. This kind of stress can be perceived as ushering new development and skills, and sometimes is referred to as “positive stress.”
of stress are temporary and manageable. 5. Reassure your child that you will support and help them through this time. 6. Let your child know they are not alone in their experience. Other children have similar feelings and experiences. Share your own experiences and how you manage and overcame them. 7. Seek professional assistance if anxious behaviours are ongoing or your child complains of ongoing distress. Anxious behaviours should not interfere with the daily functioning of a child or family. 8. Model positive stress management – children are astute observers and take their cues from their parents.
Decreasing stress in everyday life • Have regular conversations with your children to keep your pulse on their emotional lives. More effortful leading questions, such as “What did you like about XYZ?” communicates more parental interest and investment more than the routine “How was your day?”
• Facilitate adequate sleep and sleep habits: 8 to 10 hours a night recommended for teenagers, 9 to 11 hours for school-aged display of new, unproductive or repetitive behaviours. As young children, and 10-13 hours for pre-schoolers. children are less verbal they may show direct symptoms. Older • Family meals minus electronics communicates people and children and teens may be more subtle or secretive in their quality conversation are important. behaviours. Verbally, children and teens may talk about feeling • Research also supports meaningful family meals are overwhelmed or helpless. They may seek validation or become beneficial in child development, promotes prosocial behaviours, conflictual about the primary or a related topic. school success skills, good eating habits, well-being, and helps children avoid later negative and high-risk behaviours.
What to do?
• Complicated stress, such as the loss of a best friend, death 1. Observe and monitor your child’s behaviour. of a grandparent or a divorce are more challenging experiences 2. Acknowledge your child’s anxious or stressed feelings in a in the short and long-term, carry a mixture of deeper emotions. calm and sensitive manner during a neutral time. Most children can adjust to situation development with 3. Ask open-ended questions to gain information, and keep appropriate, consistent and nurturing adult support. Mindset or the lines of communication open. how one perceives and understands the meaning of stressors is 4. Reassure your child that their anxious feelings and source helpful in managing a response toward being resilient.
• Prioritize extracurricular activities based on the child’s enjoyment, interest, and skill development, not competition, parental motivation or “everybody’s doing it.” • Provide family leisure time for togetherness and rejuvenation. • Provide your child with developmentally appropriate “alonetime” to learn to self-manage, self-entertain, and self-soothe - all skills important in managing stress.