Naseby's outdoor curling culture is the focus of a climate change documentary.
Gone Curling, by Rachel Patching and Roland Kahurangi, has been completed for their master's degree course in science communications and documentary film-making, and is set to screen at several festivals.
As part of the University of Otago and NHNZ course, the pair chose as their documentary topic outdoor curling, which was potentially at risk from a changing environment.
Miss Patching (27) said the Scottish settlers who came to live in Naseby had passed on the culture of curling, with the cast of colourful characters continuing to embrace the etiquette, dress code and language.
"Curling has a lot of community value; there is no swearing on the ice, you have to be initiated, and there are the Freemason links."
The pair used a camera rig connected to indoor curling ice shoes, and became adept at the sport.
"I was quite good ...
"I beat all the boys at it," Miss Patching said.
Unlike its indoor relative, outdoor curling was dependent on the ideal weather conditions and "we looked at a culture at risk because of warming weather", she said.
Participants tended to view "soft winters" as cyclic, as opposed to climate change, and the film-makers found "no hard evidence to say it is not cyclic".
The documentary has been accepted into several New Zealand festivals, and were hoping it would be shown in the Edinburgh Film Festival.
