Tongan players in France for the 2023 Rugby World Cup. Photo: Tonga Rugby Union
Sebastian Hurrell, an Auckland-based Tongan filmmaker, believes rugby is a pathway that can help many Tongan youths overcome the challenges of life on the Island Kingdom.
He is currently putting together a film titled 'The Kingdom of Kings', which he hopes will bring Tonga to the world of rugby in a way no other has done before.
Hurrell, who has been working with his team on the film over the last 24 months, told RNZ Pacific in Auckland their film "is made by Tongans, set in Tonga, on Tongans for the Tongan people".
"It's pretty much the first film of its type. It does have rugby as a central focus to it. But it's really more about the opportunity that rugby provides to Tongans rather than rugby, the sport itself," Hurrell said.
"Rugby, for example, in Tonga provides opportunities for young kids to get out of poverty and hardship. Break out of some of the many health issues that we face in the Pacific around diabetes, obesity and heart disease.
"And this is like one of the few activities that young Tongans can enjoy. It's one of the few activities that young Tongans can enjoy."
The rugby story Hurrell and his team are wanting to tell is the pathway the oval ball game offers to young Tongans and what it can mean for them as individuals, to their families, their communities and to Tonga as a nation.
He said nothing much has changed in Tonga from when he was growing up in Nuku'alofa but rugby has stepped into the gap that has been there for ages, acting as a lifeline to many Tongans.
"So basically after school, and like it's still the same now as it was when I was a kid growing up there 30 something years ago, you can go down to the wharf and jump off the edge of the wharf into the water or you can go and play rugby," he said.
"Outside of that there's really not much to do. You got no cinemas, no museums, no galleries, no theatres, there's not really a lot of entertainment for young people. And Tonga has a population of 20 and younger which makes up nearly 50 percent of the population.
"That's a lot of young people with not much to do. So really, the focus is on how rugby affects their lives and provides them with opportunities and the possibility of what would happen if rugby were to be lost to Tonga.
"Yeah, that's what we're looking at."
Sebastian Hurrell Photo: RNZ Pacific / Iliesa Tora
Filming Tongans around the world
Hurell said the film project started pretty much on a wing and a prayer.
Discussions were held with the Tonga Rugby Union and connections were made with 'Ikale Tahi head coach Toutai Kefu and the support for them film was given.
That was November 2022.
Teaming up with like-minded people like his friend Greg Parker, who's the project's director of photography, and cousin Charles Riechelman, a former All Black, the trio flew to Bucharest to film the Tongan national team's Europe tour.
"We met the guys and they were amazing. They opened the door, they embraced us, they let us into their lives. And then from there, we've basically followed them around for a year," Hurrell revealed.
"We've been to Europe three times, Tonga four times and in Japan once, just following the team.
"But not just like going to games, I mean, going to their houses, meeting their families, their wives, eating with them, cooking with them, spending time with them, sharing the stories, understanding what it is to be Tongan and to identify as a Tongan, even if you live in Wales, Ireland, France and Japan.
"It doesn't matter where you are, what makes you Tongan and we had fun times, like in Wales, we ended up doing a walk into the back with Vaea Fifita and Sam Louise.
And I ended up having to cook the pig instead of doing the interview. And my sound guy ended up doing the interview with Vaea because Sam had to go pick up his wife, no one was left to cook the pig.
"So the only one they could trust was the Tongan and it was me, to cook the pigs. And then we went to see Vaea's brother. He basically did a little 'umu' for us just indoor unit because it was winter in Ireland.
"We really got a glimpse into these guys lives and how they take their culture and their identity with them no matter where they go in the world."
Local rugby in Tonga. Photo: Cup for Christ
Incorporating culture
Ensuring culture was shown and retained in the film is a challenge the team focuses on.
Hurrell believes culture is important in every-day life and it builds people, especially in keeping Tongan players on the pathway.
"We want to show Tongan culture, just the natural Tongan culture as it is now to the world," he said.
"You know, because we want to show that beauty. I think, people when they see rugby players they just see big brown, muscular men and they're like, 'ah, everyone is so big and strong in that country and they have no idea about the heart, the soul, the care that they have for their families, the love that they show to each other as a team, all that kind of the gentle side of these big powerful men'.
"And we got to see a little bit of that, we got to have some laughs with them, share some tears with them, you know. It's not an easy life being an international rugby player living on the other side of the planet from your family, spending nine months away every year, just to try and put food on the table.
"They've had to go through some tough times playing football."
Tonga rugby challenges
Another issue the film focuses on is bringing to the world the challenges Tongan rugby players have to put up with at home.
The lack of resources in Tonga is like what other Pacific Island rugby playing countries like Fiji and Samoa face.
But Hurrell and team want to use that as a lesson to others that despite the lack of resources things can be done in the Tongan spirit, where players work on and keep focusing on what needs to be done as a team.
"We talked a lot about the lack of resources and a lack of finance that the team have, with the CEO Peter Harding (Tonga Rugby chief executive officer), with a lot of the players, they're all aware of that, they all know it, and they don't take anything for granted," Hurrell said.
"They're just happy to be part of the team. That's the amazing thing about these guys."
He discusses one of their gym visits with the team at the Rugby World Cup in France in September, visiting Ben Tameifuna's Bordeaux Rugby Club, where the disparity in resources were so visible.
"We went to the gym with Ben and it's enormous, a huge gym, there's pools and spas and recovery rooms, and all these facilities for this club. I've never seen anything like it, not in New Zealand, or Australia, or anywhere I've been," he said.
"And they would have had more gym equipment in that one gym then they have in all of Tonga. That's insane.
"When they come to Tonga, you know, they basically put up a tent at the back of the hotel, and just had an open area with some gym equipment that they sort of borrowed, put it all together and use that."
Hurrell said the amazing thing is the guys don't complain and they turn up and carry on with the work.
"So there's no complaints. And then watching them take on the best in the world in France and doing well and taking the challenges to the top teams," he said.
"The feeling we get when I see the boys run out onto the field and perform the 'sipi tau' and singing the national anthem, it gives me goosebumps every time. Pretty much cry every time that happens.
Tonga women's Under-18 playing at the Australia Nationals in Sydney. Photo: TRU Media
"And then watching them play for well over 80 minutes obviously, bashing away doing the best they can fills me with pride. And honestly, I really don't care that much about the scoreline I care a lot about the attitude that the guys put in.
"I feel pride. I feel great pride in the team, and I feel well represented that they are representing us as talents on the world stage and showing the world that we stand up and we fight to the last breath. We never give up."
He said the film wants to capture those moments and tell the world that Tongans are not just big players but also have the heart to go past the challenges.
"They go out there to take on the games that nobody else would probably take. They have the courage to take on teams that they know are better than them, that have got more money, more training, more time together, better facilities, everything is stacked against them."
Own challenges
The team hopes to release the film in July this year.
But like the story they are trying to tell, Hurrell and his team have their own challenges.
Finance has been a big hurdle for them - just like for the Tonga Rugby Union.
Hurrell said they are making do with whatever funding they have and continue to work in faith.
"We are aiming now for July 2024. The biggest challenge has been finance. That's why it's been delayed to try and get it out," Hurrell said with some breaks in his voice.
"Right from the word go we didn't have the money to make it, we just had the idea, the passion and the drive to complete it and the skill to do a good job doing it.
"We set off to do the job. And I've been trying to fundraise as we've been going all along. And you know, that kind of works up to a point and then you run out of money. So you have to stop for a little while and try and get more money so you can carry on doing the film.
Tongan players in France for the Rugby World Cup in France. Photo: Tonga Rugby Union
"So that's been the trickiest bit trying to balance the finances with the quality of the film that we're putting together. And we can't cut back on quality, which is why we're taking more time to make our film. That's the biggest challenge."
The team aims to make one more shooting in Tonga before they finalize the film.
That is one shoot they believe is also critical for the film - capturing the Tongan hunters' spirit.
The story will be around bare-handed shark hunters who once ruled the Tongan seas.
"This story is based on the shark hunters who up until a couple of 100 years ago use to essentially hunt for sharks. barehanded, just with a canoe and some ropes and some bait," Hurrell said.
"Often one of the young boys would be used as bait to swim out into the water with some like fish heads and stuff. And then they would pull him in back into the canoe before the shark gets to him."
He said they hope the film will be an inspiration to young Tongans and also a source of real information for rugby followers around the world.
"And I also want the film to have pride in seeing Tongans on the screen, so they can feel those in the film and be inspired to want a future that's bright and positive. A career that takes them places around the world where they can share their stories, their unique Tongan stories with the world. That's what I want kids to get out of this."
Hurrell said the team is grateful to all those who have supported them and allowed them into their lives "because at the end of the day, the thing I most wanted to do with this film was to make a story about Tongans, by Tongans, for Tongans. That's the dream."
