Synopsis
Drama meets documentary to unravel the extraordinary story of Puhi, an elderly woman of the Tuhoe iwi (tribe) who believed she had been cursed. Following on from an earlier documentary about Puhi, In Spring One Plants Alone (1978), Rain of the Children sets out to unravel the mystery that has haunted the director for 30 years: Who was Puhi?

Selected as a bride for one of the prophet Rua Kenana's sons, Puhi was the mother of 14 children. She also experienced a succession of tragedies and witnessed many extraordinary events, including the 1916 police raid on the Tuhoe iwi. The film re-creates many of these dramatic scenes from Puhi's life with imagination, sensitivity and insight. These re-enactments are interspersed with early footage, interviews, and the director’s own narrative. In providing a compelling account of Puhi’s life, the film provides us with glimpses of the Tuhoe people, their history, their communities, their prophet and their spirituality.

About the Film and the Director
At 21, Director Vincent Ward made the documentary, In Spring One Plants Alone, which won international awards and set him on his path as a filmmaker with a unique vision. Since then, Ward’s films have earned critical acclaim and festival attention. His Vigil (1984), The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey (1988) and Map of the Human Heart (1993) were the first films by a New Zealander to be officially selected for the Cannes Film Festival. While in the United States, Ward wrote the story for Alien 3, and developed the material that was the basis of The Last Samurai. He wrote and directed River Queen starring Kiefer Sutherland.

Rain of the Children has been described as Vincent Ward’s most personal film ever. Narrating and appearing on camera himself, Ward tells of his journey to uncover the story of Puhi.

Ward was awarded an Order of New Zealand Merit in 2007 for his contribution to film making.

Vincent Ward on Rain of the Children: “It is a mixture of drama and documentary but basically I call it part folktale, part ballad, part mystery story..... For me, now, the overriding thing about Puhi’s life is summed up in the Tuhoe expression ‘matemate ā one’ – a love so great it goes beyond death. ”

Director and Writer: Vincent Ward
Appearances: Miriama Rangi, Rena Owen, Temuera Morrison, Taungaroa Emile, Waihoroi Shortland, Toby Morehu
Year: 2008
Language: English with Chinese subtitles
Duration: 102 mins
Category: IIB

Festival – Highlight
Era New Horizons Film Festival Poland 2008 – Grand Prix
Australian Directors Guild 2008 – Nomination for Best Director
New Zealand Film & TV Awards 2008 – Best Original Music and 6 nominations including Best Director
Asia Pacific Screen Awards 2008 – Nominated for Best Film

故事簡介：
戲劇與紀錄片融合，拆解普希不尋常的故事。普希是一名相信自己受到詛咒的年長杜好族女人。導演榮生‧華特在1978年拍攝了一部關於普希的紀錄片（春來獨耕犁）。他在孩子如雨灑片中重新出發，拆解一個困惑著他三十年的謎團 － 究景普希是個甚麼樣的人？

普希十四歲那年被許配給先知的其中一個兒子，曾經生育了十四個孩子。她經歷了接二連三的悲劇，並且目睹了好些震撼的事件，包括1916年警察掃蕩杜好族。影片重塑了許多普希生命裡的戲劇性場面，充滿幻想空間、感性而且深刻。戲劇重演與前期紀錄片片段、訪談、導演的旁述相互交錯，構成多層次的敘事。為了更具體的描述普希的一生，影片讓觀眾瞥見杜好族人的群像及其歷史、社區、先知和靈異世界。

導演與製作：
導演榮生‧華特二十一歲當年拍攝了紀錄片春來獨耕犁，贏得國際獎項和讚譽，展開了成為一個眼光獨特的電影製作人的旅程。自此，華特的電影贏得高度評價，屢獲影展邀請。他的作品Vigil (1984)、The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey (1988) 及 Map of the Human Heart (1993)是首批新西蘭人正式入選康城影展的製作。華特僑居美國期間，寫了異型3的劇本，發展了最後的武士的基礎材料繼而擔任監製，其後還編導了基佛‧蘇德蘭主演的大河女王。

孩子如雨灑被視為榮生‧華特最個人的作品。他親自為影片旁述‧同時出現在鏡頭前講述追尋普希的故事的歷程。

華特於2007年獲頒新西蘭國家勳章，以表彰他在電影業的貢獻。

榮生‧華特談孩子如雨灑：『這部片混合了戲劇和紀錄片，不過，我基本上認為它是部分民間傳說、部分史詩、部分懸疑故事……現時，在我來說，最無可置疑的是，套用一句杜好族語matemate ā one(毛利語意為‘偉大的愛超越死亡’) 來總結普希的一生。』

導演/編劇：榮生‧華特
出鏡：瑪麗安瑪‧雲琪、雲娜‧奧韻、譚慕娜‧摩利臣、唐嘉和‧艾苗、韋賀奈‧索蘭、杜比、摩豪
年分：2008
語言：英語附中文字幕
片長：102分鐘
級數 : IIB

參展及提名（摘要）：
波蘭時代新視野電影節2008－大獎
澳洲導演協會2008－最佳導演獎提名
新西蘭影視獎2008－最佳原創音樂及包括最佳導演之六項提名
亞太影展2008－最佳電影提名