WIFT NZ Events

What does it mean to sit on a board and how do women get there?

Join WIFT NZ to explore what it takes for women to step into and reshape governance in Aotearoa New Zealand. This panel brings together leading directors and governance executives whose careers span public broadcasting, screen funding, production and Crown entity governance. The conversation will map the pathways into board roles, the responsibilities and risks of directorship, the governance challenges facing Aotearoa, and what genuine gender equity around the boardroom table looks like in practice.

Our panel includes:

Jane Wrightson CMInstD 

Jane Wrightson has spent most of her working life both serving on and serving boards. She has recently concluded two terms as New Zealand's Retirement Commissioner, leading the board-less Crown entity Te Ara Ahunga Ora Retirement Commission.  Jane chairs the Charities Registration Board and the Workforce Development Fund, an industry training funding entity. She is a Governor of Radio NZ and chairs its Audit and Risk Committee. 

Previous board appointments include chairing Experience Wellington, a Council-appointed board, and directorships with Netball NZ, Swimming NZ, and the Digital Media Trust. Her executive career included stints as chief executive of NZ On Air (Crown-apponted board); the Broadcasting Standards Authority (Governor General-appointed board) and of SPADA (elected board). 

She holds an MBA with distinction, a BA in literature, is a chartered member of the Institute of Directors, and is a Distinguished Alumnus of Massey University.

Reikura Kahi

Reikura Kahi (Waikato, Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Hine, Te Whanau ā Apanui, Cook Islands) is the newly appointed Chairperson of the crown funding agency Te Māngai Pāho, having served as the Co-Chair of Te Mātāwai - an independent Māori language statutory entity from 2019 to 2025. 

She continues to work as a Lead Producer in Television and Film with a track record that stretches across 30 years. Her award winning films and documentaries include - Muru, POI E: The story of our Song, No Māori Allowed and the crime drama series - The Gone. Her most recent film, Sgt. Haane was released this year on Anzac Day. 

Her wide spectrum of experience and excellence also reaches across to the arts, community and culture, where she is also the board chair of Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Hoani Waititi Marae and tutor and composer for Ngā Tumanako. The Kapa Haka and Māori language space are her passion, where she also serves as the Tāmaki Representative on Te Matatini Board - the National Body for Māori Culture and Arts. 

Lorna Travers

Lorna is a governance professional specialising in Crown entity board appointments across the arts, heritage, sports, and media sectors in Aotearoa. A Principal Advisor at Manatū Taonga Ministry for Culture and Heritage, she is known for clear, trusted advice that supports Ministers and boards to make confident decisions and lift governance performance.

Her work spans end‑to‑end appointment processes across three Ministerial portfolios, board capability development, and supporting Crown‑funded agencies to meet their statutory and accountability obligations. Lorna has held governance advisory and secretariat roles across the public sector, including at Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the Department of Conservation, giving her a practical understanding of appointment processes and how boards operate in complex environments. 

This session will be moderated by Kelly Martin, CEO of South Pacific Pictures.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER VIA HUMANITIX

WIFT members free | Non-members $20 | Drinks and nibbles provided.

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What does it mean to sit on a board and how do women get there?

Join WIFT NZ to explore what it takes for women to step into and reshape governance in Aotearoa New Zealand. This panel brings together leading directors and governance executives whose careers span public broadcasting, screen funding, production and Crown entity governance. The conversation will map the pathways into board roles, the responsibilities and risks of directorship, the governance challenges facing Aotearoa, and what genuine gender equity around the boardroom table looks like in practice.

Our panel includes:

Jane Wrightson CMInstD 

Jane Wrightson has spent most of her working life both serving on and serving boards. She has recently concluded two terms as New Zealand's Retirement Commissioner, leading the board-less Crown entity Te Ara Ahunga Ora Retirement Commission.  Jane chairs the Charities Registration Board and the Workforce Development Fund, an industry training funding entity. She is a Governor of Radio NZ and chairs its Audit and Risk Committee. 

Previous board appointments include chairing Experience Wellington, a Council-appointed board, and directorships with Netball NZ, Swimming NZ, and the Digital Media Trust. Her executive career included stints as chief executive of NZ On Air (Crown-apponted board); the Broadcasting Standards Authority (Governor General-appointed board) and of SPADA (elected board). 

She holds an MBA with distinction, a BA in literature, is a chartered member of the Institute of Directors, and is a Distinguished Alumnus of Massey University.

Sandra Kailahi

Sandra Kailahi is an award-winning Pacific producer, journalist, director and governance leader with extensive experience across media, film, and public sector organisations. Of Tongan and New Zealand heritage, she is recognised for championing Indigenous and Pacific stories through authentic and culturally grounded storytelling.

Her screen credits include producing the acclaimed documentary For My Father’s Kingdom, the feature film Uproar, and projects including The Messiah, Meet Munch Jr., Testimony, and the bilingual Tongan drama series Brutal Lives – Mo‘ui Faingata‘a.

Alongside her creative career, Sandra has held significant governance roles, including Trustee of the New Zealand Film Commission, member of the Strong Public Media Business Case Governance Group, and Deputy Chair and Trustee of the National Pacific Radio Trust, overseeing strategic planning, financial stewardship, and organisational performance. She has also chaired the Auckland War Memorial Museum Pacific Advisory Group and served on the Museum Trust Board. She currently sits on The Cause Collective Board and the Digital Media Trust.

Sandra brings a unique perspective on leadership, governance, cultural representation, and creating pathways for diverse voices to thrive.

Lorna Travers

Lorna is a governance professional specialising in Crown entity board appointments across the arts, heritage, sports, and media sectors in Aotearoa. A Principal Advisor at Manatū Taonga Ministry for Culture and Heritage, she is known for clear, trusted advice that supports Ministers and boards to make confident decisions and lift governance performance.

Her work spans end‑to‑end appointment processes across three Ministerial portfolios, board capability development, and supporting Crown‑funded agencies to meet their statutory and accountability obligations. Lorna has held governance advisory and secretariat roles across the public sector, including at Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the Department of Conservation, giving her a practical understanding of appointment processes and how boards operate in complex environments. 

This session will be moderated by Kelly Martin, CEO of South Pacific Pictures.

WIFT members free | Non-members $20 | Drinks and nibbles provided.

CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR TICKETS VIA HUMANITIX

UNDER 10 TICKETS LEFT

When you deep-dive into Jerusha Hess's slate, the same names turn up again and again. That's no accident. Over two decades, she and her collaborators have built the kind of working relationships that let a creative voice grow, and that loyalty shows up on screen.

From co-writing the cult classic Napoleon Dynamite (2004) to her directorial debut Austenland (2013) and her Oscar-nominated animated short Ninety-Five Senses (2024), Jerusha has made unmistakably original work alongside a tight circle of cast and crew she's returned to time and again. It's a reminder that a career isn't built alone, and that the people you choose to make things with matter as much as the ideas themselves.

WIFT NZ is delighted to host Jerusha Hess for an honest conversation about staying true to your originality, the value of long-term creative partnerships, and how finding the right people early can shape everything that follows. For all who are carving out their own creative path, this is one to bring your notebook to.

This session will be moderated by Zoe McIntosh, director of Stylebender (2023).

CLICK HERE TO BOOK VIA HUMANITIX

Free for WIFT, DEGANZ & NZWG Members, $25 for non-members. Drinks & Nibbles Provided.

About Jerusha Hess:

Jerusha Hess is an American screenwriter, director, and producer best known as a co-writer of the cult comedy classics Napoleon Dynamite (2004) and Nacho Libre (2006), both of which she developed with her husband and longtime creative collaborator Jared Hess. A graduate of Brigham Young University's film program, where she began her filmmaking partnership, she made her directorial debut with Austenland (2013), a romantic comedy at the Sundance Film Festival and nominated for the Grand Jury Prize. More recently, Hess moved into animation, earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Short Film for Ninety-Five Senses (2022). She also co-wrote the Netflix animated musical feature Thelma the Unicorn (2024). Across a career spanning two decades, her work is distinguished by a fondness for underdog characters and a singular comedic sensibility that has made her films enduring favourites.