Kombi Nation

Synopsis

The trip of a lifetime…What could possibly go wrong?
Three London based Kiwi Girls, Maggie, Sal and Liz, are off on a big adventure - a Kombi van trip around Europe.

They've quit their jobs, bought a van, packed their bags and are all set to depart when they meet fellow New Zealander Scott. Before long they have invited him along for the ride and are off, headed for the party spots of Europe - the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, the Greek Islands, Oktoberfest in Munich - and so much more.

All starts well with the inevitable intoxications and indiscretions but their journey soon turns ugly as they discover their new travelling companion is not what he seems.

The trio's friendship is tested to the limit and even the camera crew become involved as the trip goes more and more off the rails.

About Kombi Nation

Everyone in New Zealand has either done the European OE, knows someone who has, or wants to do it in the future. It's a tradition that has embedded itself in our cultural identity. Kombi Nation is a road movie that follows four young kiwi travellers on one such trip of a lifetime. Sharing experiences, highs, lows, laughs, sex, fights and lots more in the pressure cooker environment that is a van trip around Europe.
The film is told through the eyes of a documentary film crew who have travelled to London to make a 'reality-TV' show about the group's journey. But as the trip goes awry, the crew are drawn more and more onto the other side of the camera.

For Director Lahood, the quintessential New Zealand OE is the Kombi trip around Europe. "Five or more young kiwis, crammed into a tired old Volkswagen, in an unofficial convoy with all the other partying travellers from around the world. Stopping at all the good time venues - Pamplona, the Beerfest, the Greek Islands and many more."
He decided it was high time that someone used this phenomenon as a backdrop for a movie. So, over one hectic month, the four actors and five crew slogged their way around the campsites of France, Spain, Portugal and Italy.
"I felt it was important for us to shoot the film right in amongst the hundreds of other antipodean travellers who make this journey every year. We used guerrilla tactics to film the scripted scenes amongst the debauchery that is the 'Big OE'.
"While there were many times when we all craved a comfortable bed and a hot meal, what we ended up with is a road movie with a difference - raucous, fun, and very very real. Everyone who watches the movie is amazed at how well it captures the spirit of this incredible journey.

For more detailed information about this movie or any other New Zealand film please go to the New Zealand Film Commission