Page 95 - NZ Hereford Magazine 2023

Graeme, left, and Al McKnight with the new sheep yards built after the filming of The Power of the Dog, with the famous Hawkdun
Range in the background, as seen in Grahame Sydney paintings.

“They were really pleased with the cows because they were including three Hereford herds and one Hereford-Angus-
so quiet; they were pleased the cattle were used to being cross herd. Two of those go to bulls from Limehills Herefords
worked with horses.” with replacements kept. The other two mobs get an Angus
Graeme says they wanted to supply their own cattle rather bull, giving either first-cross Hereford-Angus progeny or
than bring other cattle onto the farm, particularly from a three-quarter Angus (Hereford-cross).
biosecurity angle. Post-production editing solved problems “We usually carry them through winter and sell them in
like ear tags and adding cow numbers. November at the Palmerston spring sale as rising two-year-
“The homestead and the town were only a few hundred olds. The first cross are always the easiest to sell. Surplus
metres apart up here,” Philippa says. “But in the movie, Hereford heifers sell easy too.”
they’ve put different mountains behind the town because it’s The farm has 3500 half-bred ewes, a merino wether flock,
supposed to be 25 miles away. We know it’s our land in the and 1500 to 1800 replacement hoggets, with 567ha on
foreground, but it’s not our view. I’ve seen it four times and the flat, with 70ha of k-line irrigation and up to 100ha of
still see something different each time.” lucerne to help with the dry seasons, as well as 810ha of
Al says the ongoing bonus of being involved was the reaction hill country. About 10 minutes’ drive away is the run, which
to the amazing Central Otago landscape. is 4500ha of extensive freehold land sitting at least 700m
“You’d find The New York Times and London’s The Guardian above sea level.
movie reviewers asking where the scenery was and saying it “It’s a pretty harsh winter environment up there, but
was world class, and absolutely amazing, and I’m thinking, excellent summer grazing. It can be a lifesaver; the ewes can
‘surely we can make a good farming story out of this’. We wander around the tussocks with a drink and a view for a
haven’t ruined everything even though we’ve been told far couple of months and come back in pretty good nick.”
too often that we have. That makes me proud.
“It doesn’t look like this in spite of the way we’ve farmed
it, it looks like this because of the way we’ve farmed it. It has
been looked after, and that applies right through the South
Island high country.”
Philippa says she thought one of Al’s proudest moments
was sitting in the premiere in Dunedin.
“The opening scene of the movie is the Hereford cattle all
across this massive screen. He didn’t stop grinning for the
whole movie.”
The other bonus for Graeme was the economic activity
it generated, including jobs for locals, from Queenstown to
Kyeburn.
When they’re not busy watching movies being made,
farming Braeside is a team effort: Graeme on the tractor Braeside cows at home on Braeside’s lower run country after
and Al doing the stock work. There are 190 breeding cows, their stint as movie extras.

Year 2023 HEREFORD MAGAZINE 93