Only five days to go until the Gender Pay Gap Survey closes!

Only five days to go until the Gender Pay Gap Survey closes!

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

Do your bit to decrease the gender pay gap! If you haven't already, please take our latest survey - you will be helping untold screen industry women who earn significantly less than men. 

All three surveys will close on Sunday 14 August. The relevant collated,…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/only-five-days-to-go-until-the-gender-pay-gap-survey-closes/
WIFT NZ member profile: Renae Maihi

WIFT NZ member profile: Renae Maihi

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

Renae Maihi (Ngāpuhi and Te Arawa) is one of the writers and directors of the powerful New Zealand/Australian coproduction We Are Still Here.

Drawing together filmmakers from both countries, We Are Still Here is a unique Indigenous film that interweaves eight tales to tell a…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/wift-nz-member-profile-renae-maihi/
Kiwi VR game up against big guns for top award

Kiwi VR game up against big guns for top award

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

Virtual Reality time-travel adventure game Wanderer is a finalist for the VR Awards 2022 – VR Game of the Year, and Wanderer co-director and WIFT NZ member Sam Ramlu couldn't be more pleased. She says the game is in competition with some big guns including…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/kiwi-vr-game-up-against-big-guns-for-top-award/
VIDEO SLOT: Scratched: Heath Davis

VIDEO SLOT: Scratched: Heath Davis

Posted Monday 08 Aug 2022

Former New Zealand Test player Davis becomes the country’s first male international cricketer to publicly speak about being gay in this documentary produced by Hex Work Productions.

Three decades after his Test debut, Davis, now 50, publicly reveals his sexuality for the first time, in…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/video-slot-scratched-heath-davis/
You can't beat Wellington on a good night!

You can't beat Wellington on a good night!

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

That's the name of this short film, co-written and co-directed by WIFT NZ member Breana Rath. It's a five-minute dance-based short film to bring the spark back to "the coolest little capital in the world", and the graduate project of a group of final-year Massey…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/you-can-t-beat-wellington-on-a-good-night/
Hit the Roadie: pilot for new webseries drops in a week!

Hit the Roadie: pilot for new webseries drops in a week!

Posted Monday 08 Aug 2022

Produced by Alex Hunter Roadie is a comedy/crime/drama webseries set in our own beautiful backyard. The story follows a mismatched duo: Alister, a timid germaphobe and Zak, an off-the-rails crook, who are being hunted down by a fierce hitwoman (played by Loren Martin) as they…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/hit-the-roadie-pilot-for-new-webseries-drops-in-a-week/
WIN: double passes to A Stitch In Time

WIN: double passes to A Stitch In Time

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

A Stitch In Time is a heart-warming story about former dressmaker Liebe (played by 88-year-old actor Maggie Blinco, The Nightingale, Crocodile Dundee), who reinvents herself after befriending young Chinese Australian fashion designer Hamish (Hoa Xuande: Top of The Lake, Hungry Ghosts).

When Liebe’s partner Duncan…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/win-double-passes-to-a-stitch-in-time/
Click for a creative community!

Click for a creative community!

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

Are you a theatre practitioner wanting to know more about VR? Are you a game developer curious about puppetry? Join Click Community Manager and WIFT NZ member Bridie Thomson each month as she catches up with different Click Community Creatives to find out what makes…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/click-for-a-creative-community/
Upcoming NZ On Air funding deadline

Upcoming NZ On Air funding deadline

Posted Tuesday 12 Jul 2022

The deadline is September, but don't leave it until the last minute for your application for NZ On Air funding. We're letting you know nice an early so you can be prepared.

Deadline: 4pm 29 September 2022 / Decisions: 30 November 2022

For Factual: General…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/upcoming-nz-on-air-funding-deadline/
How do you REALLY feel about the screen industry?

How do you REALLY feel about the screen industry?

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

Showtools is doing its annual anonymous Screen Industry Health Check survey, so here's your chance to have your say! How do you feel about the screen guilds and other screen organisations? The funding agencies? The film schools? The industry in general? Your opinions and your…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/how-do-you-really-feel-about-the-screen-industry/
Story Camp applications close at 11:59 tonight!

Story Camp applications close at 11:59 tonight!

Posted Monday 08 Aug 2022

We thought we'd remind you, just in case you're still wondering whether to hit 'send' on your application!

Applications for feature film projects in both Development and Advanced Development will be accepted.

The submission requirements are different for the two stages.

Advanced Development
 means the film…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/story-camp-applications-close-at-11-59-tonight/
NZTV Awards entries close tomorrow

NZTV Awards entries close tomorrow

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

A quick and last minute reminder that if your nominations are in draft, you'll need to submit them by 5pm tomorrow (Thursday 11 August)! 
And make sure that Thursday 24 November is in your calendar for the live awards show at Shed 10, Auckland. 
The…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/nztv-awards-entries-close-tomorrow/
The Foundations of Story and Character workshop with Gavin McGibbon

The Foundations of Story and Character workshop with Gavin McGibbon

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

Don’t miss this interactive and practical Script To Screen workshop that will help you navigate through the complexities of writing a feature film.

Great stories create an umbilical cord between the screen and the audience, where the audience feels everything that the character does. This…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/the-foundations-of-story-and-character-workshop-with-gavin-mcgibbon/
Why are there so few women in animation?

Why are there so few women in animation?

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

It took until Frozen in 2013 for a woman to direct (even)a Disney princess movie. Jennifer Lee, who is now the chief creative officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios, helmed the hugely successful franchise and Frozen won an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. 

Well,…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/why-are-there-so-few-women-in-animation/
Find out the 2022 Genres and Elements for this year's 48Hours

Find out the 2022 Genres and Elements for this year's 48Hours

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

All will be revealed between 6.30pm - 7pm on Friday 12 August on the 48Hours YouTube livestream

Good luck to all our members who are involved! 

And homai te paki paki to Te Tumu Whakaata Taonga / The New Zealand Film Commission which is helping…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/find-out-the-2022-genres-and-elements-for-this-year-s-48hours/
C21 launches new Fundamentals strand at Content London

C21 launches new Fundamentals strand at Content London

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

C21Media has announced a new initiative titled Fundamentals, which will become a cornerstone strand at Content London 2022, and a new online resource of the same name to provide comprehensive analysis of content funding and finance for companies in the international television business.

The first Fundamentals…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/c21-launches-new-fundamentals-strand-at-content-london/
Intro to game development for junior girls

Intro to game development for junior girls

Posted Tuesday 09 Aug 2022

Girls in Games Junior Development Day is back on campus with a full day event with game design, game art, and game programming workshops. Over the course of the day, you will be introduced to creating art assets for games in 2D or 3D.…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/intro-to-game-development-for-junior-girls/
Get listed in the Aotearoa Screen Publicists Contact Book

Get listed in the Aotearoa Screen Publicists Contact Book

Posted Thursday 21 Jul 2022

Attention all screen publicists! The Aotearoa Screen Publicists Collective (ASPC) has created the ASPC Contact Book, an online database of everyone working in the screen publicity and marketing space: screen and entertainment publicists, marketers and advertising experts; impact producers; social media strategists, managers and influencers;…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/get-listed-in-the-aotearoa-screen-publicists-contact-book/
Successful screen industry job-sharing: case study

Successful screen industry job-sharing: case study

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

Certain jobs lend themselves to a job-sharing situation. WIFT NZ talked to experienced location coordinators Morgan Leigh Stewart and Stacey Ngawhika who made a screen industry job-share work for them. 

Morgan and Stacey job-shared the role of location coordinator on the Netflix show Cowboy Bebop.…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/successful-screen-industry-job-sharing-case-study/
WIFTers' films to screen at TIFF

WIFTers' films to screen at TIFF

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

A round of applause please for Renae Maihi, Liz DiFiore and Selina Joe, who were all highly involved in the two films selected to screen at this year's Toronto International Film Festival, the word's biggest public film festival! 

Renae was a director and writer on…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/wifters-films-to-screen-at-tiff/
Mothers of the Revolution Shortlisted for Grierson Award

Mothers of the Revolution Shortlisted for Grierson Award

Posted Thursday 18 Aug 2022

We've got our fingers crossed for director Briar March, editor Margot Francis and and the MOTR team. Along with seven other films, MOTR is in the running for Best Single Documentary – Domestic. The nominations will be announced on 21 September. 

March's documentary tells the…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/mothers-of-the-revolution-shortlisted-for-grierson-award/
Connect with international WIFT members at the 2022 WIFTI summit!

Connect with international WIFT members at the 2022 WIFTI summit!

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

Broadcast live from Lagos Nigeria the WIFTI Summit is happening online 30-31 August, and as WIFT NZ members, you're invited! Connect online with other WIFT members and chapters from around the world, and celebrate WIFTI’s 25th anniversary. The times are through the night but there…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/connect-with-international-wift-members-at-the-2022-wifti-summit/
VIDEO SLOT Hair Now

VIDEO SLOT Hair Now

Posted Thursday 18 Aug 2022

This six part documentary series aims to get to the root of our prickly relationship with body hair. Produced by A Grain Of Rice Productions and directed by Michelle Ang, Hair Now follows six women from different cultural backgrounds across Aotearoa examining how their hair…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/video-slot-hair-now/
Funding announcements!

Funding announcements!

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

The NZFC Board approved three new feature films for production financing totalling over $4.1m, and we're pleased to say, they all have a WIFT member at (or near!) the helm. 

Trolgar & Me
Director: Gillian Ashurst

When a Norwegian troll is banished by the Grand Jury…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/funding-announcements/
"The most exciting time in NZ's film and television making history" - Kiwi producer

"The most exciting time in NZ's film and television making history" - Kiwi producer

Posted Thursday 18 Aug 2022

Producer Phil Smith of Great Southern talked to RNZ's Standing Room Only about the surge in creativity and how to keep it going.

Smith is part of that surge, coming off the hit series One Lane Bridge, and with a new series Dry Creek about…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/the-most-exciting-time-in-nz-s-film-and-television-making-history-kiwi-producer/
The Outlook for Someday

The Outlook for Someday

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

It's wonderful to see WIFT NZ members out there making a difference in budding filmmakers' lives. Some of you worked on or were mentors for this year's Someday Stories Series 6, supporting the exceptional work of six emerging young filmmaking teams, and supporting them to…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/the-outlook-for-someday/
Tansley's short to screen in US festivals

Tansley's short to screen in US festivals

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

Well done to Rebecca Tansley whose short film The Finding has picked up two more international festival selections - the Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival in Vermont and the Lady Filmmakers Festival in Los Angeles next month.

Rebecca can’t attend as she's in pre-production for her…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/tansley-s-short-to-screen-in-us-festivals/
POW Studios awarded Screenrights grant

POW Studios awarded Screenrights grant

Posted Thursday 18 Aug 2022

Congratulations to Marie Silberstein and POW Studios which will receive A$29,100 from the Screenrights 2022 Cultural Fund. This year’s focus was New Opportunities, and Marie says getting the grant is a real privilege and will help POW create more inclusive content.  Building inclusive content begins…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/pow-studios-awarded-screenrights-grant/
Ullyart's solo noir show heading to Auckland Writers Festival

Ullyart's solo noir show heading to Auckland Writers Festival

Posted Thursday 18 Aug 2022

“If you’re sick of the nightmares, you’ve come to the right place, life lies waiting for the person who dares...”

Catch multidisciplinary artist Hester Ullyart's one-woman show Paragon Dreams at the Herald Theatre this week where it's part of the New Zealand Writers Festival.
In…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/ullyart-s-solo-noir-show-heading-to-auckland-writers-festival/
WIN Tickets to Official Competition

WIN Tickets to Official Competition

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

This comic satire skewers the pretensions of cinema - and who doesn't love a good send-up of the movie business?! The Washington Post called Official Competition "a fiendishly entertaining tour de force", so you know what you're in for!

We have five double passes to…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/win-tickets-to-official-competition/
FilmUp 2022

FilmUp 2022

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

Homai te paki paki to the WIFT NZ members selected for the Script To Screen FilmUp Mentorship Programme. This six-month professional development programme is for writers, directors and producers.
The successful WIFT NZ members are:

  • Marina Alofagia McCartney, Writer/Director - Feature Film;
  • Emma Mortimer, Producer…
/news/news-archive/2022/aug/filmup-2022/
SPADA Masterclass in mentor-mentee relationship

SPADA Masterclass in mentor-mentee relationship

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

Mentoring happens at all levels of the screen sector and there are some great initiatives out there to support mentors and mentees to work together.
Join host Karin Williams and guest panelists for this SPADA Masterclass in how to navigate the mentor / mentee relationship,…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/spada-masterclass-in-mentor-mentee-relationship/
Get inspired with VFX

Get inspired with VFX

Posted Thursday 18 Aug 2022

Jump online for this DEGANZ professional development workshop on VFX.

WIFT NZ member Sharon Lark, an independent VFX producer and consultant, and Stan Alley, a VFX supervisor, will shed light on the power of VFX and how it can open doors to new story possibilities.…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/get-inspired-with-vfx/
Introducing Kōpere Ake - series development funding for screenwriters!

Introducing Kōpere Ake - series development funding for screenwriters!

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

Tomorrow the New Zealand Writers Guild will announce details on a funding initiative designed to break through the barriers faced by Aotearoa screenwriters - namely, insufficient time to craft and write material at the level of quality required to compete against international content.
Called Kōpere…
/news/news-archive/2022/aug/introducing-kopere-ake-series-development-funding-for-screenwriters/
Enter C21's International Drama Awards and celebrate your success!

Enter C21's International Drama Awards and celebrate your success!

Posted Thursday 18 Aug 2022

Entry for C21's International Drama Awards closes on September 16. The awards will be judged by 100 of the world's leading drama commissioners!

The Awards feature 12 categories, from Best English Language Series to Best newform drama series.

All entries must have had their first…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/enter-c21-s-international-drama-awards-and-celebrate-your-success/
World Congress of Science and Factual Producers '22

World Congress of Science and Factual Producers '22

Posted Thursday 18 Aug 2022

Registration is open for the 2022 World Congress of Science and Factual Producers! It's the 30th year of this fantastic event which will be held in beautiful Glasgow, Scotland, from November 28–December 2.

Back in-person again for the first time since 2019, Congress '22 will feature…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/world-congress-of-science-and-factual-producers-22/
Film Otago Southland seeks Chair and Trustee positions

Film Otago Southland seeks Chair and Trustee positions

Posted Thursday 18 Aug 2022

If you can combine a good knowledge of the local film industry with experience in strategic thinking and  organisational growth then consider one of these three voluntary positions.

Film Otago Southland (FOS) is recruiting a Chair and two additional Trustees to the Board to replace…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/film-otago-southland-seeks-chair-and-trustee-positions/
Catch the 48Hours heats online, and tickets now available for the City Finals!

Catch the 48Hours heats online, and tickets now available for the City Finals!

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

Apparently the weather played ball for the Vista Foundation 48Hours shoot weekend last weekend, and there was even a full super moon (great timing for those doing night shoots!). There were 555 teams making films this year, so spare a thought for the 48Hours organisers…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/catch-the-48hours-heats-online-and-tickets-now-available-for-the-city-finals/
Showtools screen industry health check survey reminder

Showtools screen industry health check survey reminder

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

A reminder that if you haven't already done the Showtools Screen Industry Health Check survey, now is the time to tick that off your list! How do you feel about the screen guilds and other screen organisations? The funding agencies? The film schools? The industry…

/news/news-archive/2022/aug/showtools-screen-industry-health-check-survey-reminder/
Queer Story Workshop 2022

Queer Story Workshop 2022

Posted Tuesday 23 Aug 2022

This half-day story workshop is an opportunity to practise your writing craft in a queer-led space. Learn helpful narrative techniques to progress your film concept amongst like-minded storytellers.
Speakers are WIFT NZ members Lula Cucchiara, Anna Duckworth, Todd Karehana, and Nikki Si’ulepa.

Led by filmmaker mentors,…
/news/news-archive/2022/aug/queer-story-workshop-2022/