Writing

Gavin Strawhan

No biography available.

Known For

Whale RiderWhale Rider · 2003
Whale Rider
7.02003
MovieDramaFamily
A contemporary story of love, rejection, and triumph as a young Māori girl fights to fulfill a destiny her grandfather refuses to recognize.
Crooked EarthCrooked Earth · 2001
Crooked Earth
7.52001
MovieDrama
Will Bastion returns home from the army after an absence of 20 years to bury his father, the former chief of thee Maori tribe, Ngati Kaipuku. The eldest son, he is reluctant to inherit his fathers role, so it is taken more willingly by his younger brother, Kahu. Kahu is the leader of a band of drug dealers and trouble-makers who ride horses through the middle of town, wrecking peoples gardens. Under the guise of refusal of a land settlement, Kahu makes a large marijuana deal with some murdering city folk. Will must choose between loyalty for his brother and his father, Maori tradition, and contemporary financial issues.
Lawless: Beyond JusticeLawless: Beyond Justice · 2001
Lawless: Beyond Justice
4.52001
MovieCrimeThriller
Two private investigators discover the truth behind a gangland drug deal gone wrong.
LawlessLawless · 1999
Lawless
8.01999
MovieCrimeThriller
An undercover cop who has been undercover for too long has to prepare to make the biggest bust of his career to arrest a drug lord, is suddenly betrayed by a person he least suspects and finds himself on the wrong side of the law. Now framed for a crime he didn't commit, he is determined to uncover his betrayer.
Lawless: Dead EvidenceLawless: Dead Evidence · 2001
Lawless: Dead Evidence
6.32001
MovieCrimeThriller
A killer thought behind bars is killing again. It's up to John Lawless (Kevin Smith) and Jodie Keane (Angelina Dotchin) to stop the murders.
Erebus: Operation OverdueErebus: Operation Overdue · 2014
Erebus: Operation Overdue
7.02014
MovieDocumentary
On 28 November 1979, an Air New Zealand jet with 257 passengers went missing during a sightseeing tour over Antarctica. Within hours 11 ordinary police officers were called to duty to face the formidable Mount Erebus. As the police recovered the victims, an investigation team tried to uncover the mystery of how a jet could fly into a mountain in broad daylight. Did the airline have a secret it wanted to bury? This film tells the story of four New Zealand police officers who went to Antarctica as part of the police operation to recover the victims of the crash. Set in the beautiful yet hostile environment of Antarctica, this is the emotional and compelling true story of an extraordinary police operation.
Waitangi Day: What Really HappenedWaitangi Day: What Really Happened · 2011
Waitangi Day: What Really Happened
2011
MovieHistory
This docudrama follows an imaginary news reporter who travels back in time to cover the days leading up to the Treaty of Waitangi's signing on 6 February 1840. Dropping the usual solemnity surrounding Aotearoa's founding document, it uses humour and asides to camera to evoke the chaos and motives behind the treaty. This clip features a confrontation between Hone Heke and representatives of the Crown.
Outrageous FortuneOutrageous Fortune · 2005
Outrageous Fortune
6.72005
SeriesComedyDrama
After her husband is incarcerated, matriarch Cheryl decides that her career criminal family should go straight and abide by the law.

Filmography

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Erebus: Operation OverdueErebus: Operation Overdue · 2014
Erebus: Operation Overdue
7.02014
MovieDocumentary
On 28 November 1979, an Air New Zealand jet with 257 passengers went missing during a sightseeing tour over Antarctica. Within hours 11 ordinary police officers were called to duty to face the formidable Mount Erebus. As the police recovered the victims, an investigation team tried to uncover the mystery of how a jet could fly into a mountain in broad daylight. Did the airline have a secret it wanted to bury? This film tells the story of four New Zealand police officers who went to Antarctica as part of the police operation to recover the victims of the crash. Set in the beautiful yet hostile environment of Antarctica, this is the emotional and compelling true story of an extraordinary police operation.

Writer

City LifeCity Life · 1996
City Life
5.01996
SeriesDrama
City Life was a New Zealand soap opera that screened on TVNZ from 1996-1998. It was portrayed the lives and loves of ten singles who lived in an upmarket apartment building in Auckland, New Zealand. The show was touted as New Zealand's answer to Melrose Place. The show starred Claudia Black, Lisa Chappell, Laurie Foell and Oliver Driver and featured a guest appearance by well known New Zealand actor, Kevin Smith. The show had a long development period, and the original treatment for the show had it set in Wellington with the working title 96 Oriental Parade. However, it was decided to produce the show in Auckland instead, and as such, the shows setting was changed along with the name to City Life. The first episode began with a controversial first scene, featuring a drunken Damon who owned the apartment building, in a homosexual kiss with his former lover Ryan on the night before his wedding. Damon was later killed off in the same episode after being hit by a car on the way to his wedding, and he left his apartment building to all of his friends. However, Damon's fianceè vowed to fight for her share of Damon's estate, leading to a storyline that would span the show's first five episodes.

Writer