Chris says new film Communication got off the ground after a previous project was shelved due to funding issues.

 Producer Andy Jalfon and I were scratching our heads to think of an alternative story that could be achieved on a more modest budget, and quickly - we knew we had to shoot in December, and with the beginning of September looming that didnt leave us with long to come up with something.

Thankfully, I spotted a news story about a new, original, locally-written gay-themed play being performed in Aucklands eastern suburbs. The play was called Communication, and centered around a relationship between two men with quite an age gap between them - Jacob was twenty, and Andrew sixty.

Andrew and Jacob are not your usual sugar daddy/rent-boy combo; in fact, the pair fear the label. Jacob is an Orthodox Jewish student who never expected to hear from is old university tutor Andrew ever again. Shocked to learn of Andrews sudden death, and surprised to discover that he has inherited his estate, Jacob returns to Andrews house looking for answers.

As Jacob wanders from room to empty room, a flood of memories from their final days together return to haunt him, leading to a final confrontation which forces Jacob to accept a painful truth about their relationship and himself.

The idea of two men emotionally crippled by their inability to communicate their true feelings to one another really struck a chord with me, and with the film adaptation I took the opportunity to push these men as far into the corners as possible in order to explore the barriers that prevent lasting happiness - those imposed by individuals as well as society, says Chris.

The themes of identity and belonging are also very personal to me. Being comfortable in ones identity can give you a sense a belonging, but when you have several identities to which you must remain true, the results are often unpleasant.  Jacob is torn between his faith and culture, for which he has a deep respect, and his burgeoning feelings for other men.

Satisfying his emotional needs runs the risk of him being judged by his family, peers, and ultimately God. Even if a relationship were possible with Andrew, he must face judgment from other gay men who would make assumptions about the true nature of their relationship.

Andrew is well aware of his own predicament older men pursuing much younger men are not looked upon with favour, and his own fears of how he will be labelled hold him back from revealing the extent of his feelings for Jacob.

Andy, who also worked on Teddy, says he was attracted to the story as he has always been fascinated with the notion of communication.  In our day to day lives we dont always say what we think. We temper what we say and adjust our sentences to keep as many people happy as possible. As a producer, thats often part of my job!

Andy ended up doing much more than just producing providing a house owned by his parents for the shoot, and working as director of photography when the person organised pulled out. Despite time restraints and a huge amount of work to do, Andy says it was most definitely worth it.

Its nice to get your hands dirty, and having such a good crew to work with made the job enjoyable rather than stressful, he says.

Chris says screening dates for Communication will be confirmed in around a months time, but if you want to get a taste of what the film looks like, head along to Galatos Bars queer film nights on 16 and 18 February, where the trailer will be shown.

For more information on Communication, visit www.communicationthefilm.com.