Is West Otago making hay from its recent brush with Disney or has that particularly opportunity gone up in a puff of dragon smoke? Samuel White asks whether Pete’s Dragon has breathed new fire into Tapanui.
It was April 2015 when the West Otago town of Tapanui was invaded by a film crew there to re-create a live-action version of 1977 Disney film Pete’s Dragon.
Location scouts had searched throughout New Zealand for plausible sites for the fictional 1980s Oregon town of Millhaven.
At Tapanui they found the frozen-in-time look they were after.
"They were after some shops which had some age to them," says Tapanui West Otago (TWO) Promotions chairman Horace McAuley.
Almost "overnight" Tapanui was transformed into a bustling American town.
Two years later there is little overtly obvious to show Pete or his dragon were ever there, though some say the town has changed since Disney came to stay.
More stores have opened in the main street since filming finished, there is more activity in the housing market and more families are moving in, locals say.
There are certainly more tourists and more foot traffic in town, and visitors are asking about the movie and to see things related to it.
Mr McAuley said the promotions group would like to use the movie to promote the town and attract more visitors — for example, by putting signs at the entrances to the town indicating Tapanui was the "Home of Pete’s Dragon" — but the money for such projects was hard to come by in a small town.
"I know sometimes people are disappointed that we haven’t got flashing lights and a big Elliot [the dragon] in the town, but sometimes these things cost a lot of money."
It had been hoped Disney might help out, but that had not happened so far.
"We’d perhaps live in hope that the next phone call we get is going to be from ... Disney, saying we want to come down and put a dragon in the middle of town."
Despite a lack of marketing, Pete’s Dragon had put Tapanui on the map, he said.
Many visitors asked about the film.
"I think one of the sad things is that there isn’t any obvious remains of the film being made here."
Some of the props had scattered throughout the town, picked up by residents and put away in storage sheds.
At present, inquisitive tourists could only be pointed in the direction of a plaque the crew gave the town in thanks for its hospitality or a window front that displayed an American flag and photos from filming.
Another who would love to see a dragon appear in the town "peeping" from above one of the buildings is local district councillor Michele Kennedy.
"That’s a little dream of mine," she said.
There were licensing and copyright issues which could be limiting, but something needed to be done and soon in order to catch people’s interest, she said.
"Otherwise, things can die pretty quick," she said.
She had also picked up on the increase in visitors and residents, but it was hard to know if it was directly linked to Pete’s Dragon, Cr Kennedy said.
"There has been a wee bit of movement. Tapanui itself has been buzzed up. It’s really cool."
Clutha Mayor Bryan Cadogan said there was a lot of awareness in Tapanui of the significance of Pete’s Dragon, but exactly how the community followed up on that was yet to be seen.
The council was open to supporting ideas that provided an economic return and were supported by the community.
"When any community comes up with a proactive idea, we always want to be in behind them.
"We’d have to go through [a] process when the time comes ... If the community wants to get proactive and positive, then we’ll do the best we can for them."
Another who thinks more could be done to market the town and its ties to the film is Farryn Crawford.
She owns Top Nosh cafe, which was transformed into a classic 1980s all-American "yellow diner" with leather booths and a milk bar for filming.
Along with the booths, Ms Crawford and co-owner Aleisha Haskins still have ceramic plates signed by cast and crew hanging on the wall, and have plans to create a Pete’s Dragon feature wall.
She had definitely noticed the flow-on effects of playing host to a Disney film.
"There’s heaps more travellers now."
She would direct some to the room where filming took place or show them a book with photographs of the town transformed.
The main street had definitely changed since the filming, some shops having been done up and businesses flourishing, she said.
The film was "really a special part of the town now" and it would be great if there was something more the council, or another group, could do to promote the town using its connection to Pete’s Dragon.
Blue Mountain Butchery owner Vaughn Wesselson opened his business in the main street last year.
He said his business decision was not directly related to the film, but he would like the town to capitalise on what made it sufficiently special to star in a Disney movie.
Something should be done, whether that was setting up a farmers market or creating links to Pete’s Dragon, he said.
"It’s a case of finding things that entice people into Tapanui."
There was a "real positive hum" about Tapanui at present, he said.
The population had also increased — he had counted at least half a dozen families who had moved to the district in the past six months, Mr Wesselson said.
Tapanui had always had a lot going for it and Pete’s Dragon had just reminded people of that.
"It just re-sparked things for Tapanui. It kick-started people again."
Clutha-Southland MP Todd Barclay said Pete’s Dragon was a perfect example of how beneficial international productions could be for New Zealand.
It was reported several Tapanui businesses increased their revenue 80%-90% during the month of filming, and the paybacks to West Otago from filming were ongoing, he said.
Film location manager Clayton Tikao said Tapanui could again be offered the chance to provide the setting for a small town in the US for American production companies.
His job was to put New Zealand’s "best foot forward".
There was nothing on the horizon at the moment, but that did not mean it would not happen, he said.
The filming of You’ve Got the Cowboy was set to start in Ranfurly, and other filmmakers and executives were realising what small towns in New Zealand had to offer.
Conical Hill sawmill was one asset Tapanui had which could be used again, he said.
In the meantime, he was confident there would soon at least be more visual evidence of a dragon having visited the town.
