American Samoa is gearing up for the release of Taika Waititi’s latest film - which is all about the small island territory's football team.
Next Goal Wins, a sports comedy, is set to be released on November 17 and is based on the 2013 documentary of the same name.
Starring Michael Fassbender and Oscar Kightley, the film follows former US under-20 men’s team coach Thomas Rongen as he tries to turn American Samoa into winners ahead of the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Before then, the US territory had been known for a 31-0 loss at the hands of Australia - the biggest defeat in international football history.
Both the documentary and the film cover the trials and tribulations of the squad, and their historic second victory, beating Tonga 2-1 in 2011.
Speaking to 1News, Football Federation of American Samoa (FFAS) CEO Tavita Taumua said football as a sport is “developing”, and the release of the film will put their team on the world stage.
He said that people in the federation who have seen the film were “impressed” and “very happy to see something about American Samoa”.
But the excitement surrounding the film is less about the names attached to it, Taumua says.
"Most people here, they don't know these big stars. When people said Micheal is going to be in it, I said: 'Who is that?'"
Taumua said the story the film is trying to tell is an incredibly important one for the island's sporting history, which is what makes it one worth telling.
“It’s something that we finally achieved,” he said.
“Not only that, but it’s for our reputation as well because before we were embarrassed about it, other countries in American Samoa felt like we were easy points.
“But ever since we had that win from the World Cup Qualifying, it's been a wake-up call for us, that we can do better.”
While the film is set in American Samoa, it was actually filmed in Hawaii, which is also part of the American Pacific but has a different culture and language.
“I was hoping that they would come down here and do it here, but that would be something different too,” Taumua said.
“If they can properly incorporate the culture, I would rather do it here in American Samoa.”
The film has only been seen by a select group of FFAS members, who Taumua says have given “mixed” reactions - mainly about the choice to make it a comedy. He hasn’t seen it yet.
“Those who have seen the documentary itself had some comments. People who haven’t watched the documentary, they like it,” he said.
“When you watch the documentary, there are some sad episodes, some emotional parts, so when they look at the movie and it's a comedy, they try and put it that they’re not happy.”
He recommended people watch the documentary before the film to get an understanding of the true story.
“Every time I watch the documentary, I cry.”
He said that locals across the islands are buzzing ahead of the film's release.
“Quite a lot of people are talking about it.
“People from our federation who’ve watched it, they’ve spread out the news and most of the people right now are looking forward to November.”
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