Grafted

What’s it about?

Grafted follows Wei, a science student who is researching regenerative skin-graft methods. Shunned by her cousin and others at university, she takes revenge by stealing their faces.

The facts

• Directed by Sasha Rainbow (Kamali)
• Language: English and Mandarin
• Runtime: 95 minutes
• Grafted is screening now at the 2024 New Zealand International Film Festival, which runs from 31 July – 4 September. The general release date is 12 September.

Why did it get this rating?

This film was classified by Te Mana Whakaatu, Classification Office. You can find out more about classification process and ratings here.

Sex

A university professor has a sexual relationship with one of his students, and we briefly see them having sex while clothed.

It is implied that the professor has sex with another character.

Cruelty

Wei’s peers are mean to her, excluding her for being too ‘Asian’ and teasing her for her food choices.

Violence

There are several scenes of bloody violence, including:

• A character slices the skin off of other characters’ faces. At times we see their faces red-raw after being skinned.
• A character’s face is overtaken by a skin graft that goes wrong. He slashes at his own face and is stabbed by another character.
• A character is stabbed in the eye.
• A character’s head is drilled into.

Offensive language

Offensive language is sometimes used to express frustration and also to insult others. When combined with horror, cruelty and violence, this language intensifies the scenes and may be shocking to younger viewers.

Self-harm

A character takes a skin-graft by slicing a small section of their own skin from their leg using a vegetable peeler. This is shown briefly in close-up. The character is not trying to hurt themselves – this is part of an experiment – but it is still disturbing.

Helplines

Even though the character in the film is not trying to hurt themselves, self-harm can be upsetting for some viewers, especially for those who have gone through similar experiences. If you are struggling with what you have seen on screen please reach out for help. If you or someone you know needs to talk:

• 1737

Further information

Why are ratings and content warnings important for me and my whānau? - Blog