Based on the upbringing of Welby Ings’ late partner, Punch is the story of teenager Jim, an aspiring boxer growing up in small-town New Zealand with his alcoholic father-coach, Stan (played by English actor Tim Roth). Jim’s growing friendship with another adolescent, Whetu, forces him to confront his own sexuality.
When you drive into Arapuni, there’s a paddock on the left. In August, the grass is wet and the cows watch you disconsolately as you glide past them on the road. You wouldn’t know it now, but, when I was a kid, there was a piece of
