Archive Mar 2023

Cantabrians, head to the Lumiere Cinema during the first week of April for the premiere screening of Independent Producer Alexandra Porter's documentary about a visionary New Zealander.

Executive Produced by Nadia Maxwell, Building Bridges: Bill Youren's Vision of Peace has successfully completed the global international…

Well done to our members who are finalists in the C21 Digital Drama Pitch for 2023. Co-producer Olivia Shanks and Great Southern Television for Son, one of seven projects shortlisted from more than 90 submissions, spanning the USA, France, New Zealand, South Africa and Finland.…

This wonderful documentary won the 1^st Jury Prize and the Youth Jury Prize at the Festival International du Film Documentaire Océanien (FIFO) recently. Congratulations to director Briar March, producer Leanne Pooley, editor Margot Francis and cinematographer Mark Lapwood.

If you haven't seen it on the…

Acclaimed filmmaker Pietra Brettkelly and Oscar-nominated producer Chelsea Winstanley are running a Boosted campaign for Pietra's latest ambitious project, Crocodile.

It's a coming-of-age story about a group of Nigerian kids and young adults who are making their own sci-fi feature film.

"They live in a…

The screen community is rallying around all those who have been badly affected by the recent weather events. We’re sharing these links to the Give-a-little campaigns for WIFT NZ member Rose Worley from Te Henga (Bethells Beach) and WIFT NZ ally Anna Coddington from Auckland…

We’re wishing bon voyage and all the best to director Louise Lever whose short film Joey’s Heart has been selected to World Premiere at the BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival.

The Festival runs from 15-26 March 2023 and Louise will be attending the 19…

The Unreal Engine Short Film Challenge was an Australian-New Zealand initiative which funded the production of animated short films that utilise Unreal Engine 5 software. Those funded had just eight weeks to form teams and create an animated short film using Unreal Engine 5. Everyone…

Women’s Work’s latest exhibition, The Shape of Things, celebrates the unique and often unrepresented way of viewing the world. Featuring over 50 thought-provoking images, LED window displays, and panel discussions on the need for sharp, diverse and original work, The Shape of Things is a…

Let's hear it for NZ On Air Funding Advisor Heperi Mita who has been named one of the Obama Foundation Leaders Asia-Pacific cohort for 2023!

The Leaders Asia-Pacific programme is a leadership development and community engagement program that seeks to inspire, empower, and connect emerging…

WIFTI has continued its partnership with IMDb offering WIFTI members a 30% discount off monthly or annual IMDbPro membership. The new 2023 IMDbPro discount code for 30% off an annual or monthly membership is 2023WIFTIAFF.

To redeem codes, users must go to IMDbpro.com/redeem, enter the…

...And use your special discount code while you're at it! As a WIFT NZ member you now get 15% off the entry fee to ASFF 2023 when you use this code: WIFTNZ15X23.
The code expires on 30 April 2023.

Submit your film to one of the…

Script to Screen has partnered with Aotearoa SyncPosium to bring you this extraordinary panel of US speakers who are masters of music in film and TV.

This is a unique opportunity to hear from the Head of Music at Amazon Studios, Anton Monsted, who music…

Get those tickets while you can! The 10th Māoriland Film Festival runs from 15-19 March, and the ten-year anniversary coincides with the festival becoming the largest international Indigenous film festival in the world.

Tickets are also on sale for the Festival's special events. This year’s…

If you're in the broadcast, media and entertainment industry, the NAB* 2023 trade show is for you!

This year its happening in Las Vegas, April 15-19, and it's for anyone involved in:

• Broadcasting: TV, radio, cable, streaming, satellite, telco, internet/social.
• Corporate/Enterprise: education, healthcare, house of…

Filmmakers and journalists ready to take the next leap in their career reporting from the global south should apply for this! It’s open to anyone from all around the world and submissions from underrepresented groups (people of colour, ethnic groups, women, LGBTQ+, or people with…

Have you ever had funds to bring on a script consultant or editor for your screen story but have struggled to find the right person to work with?

In response to an industry need for greater access to experienced script developers, Script to Screen launches…

The costume industry is inherently wasteful – a typical film or TV drama will use more clothing than the average person uses in their lifetime and will produce more waste in a week than the average household in a year.

Albert, an environmental organisation aiming…

The Writers Lab (TWL) has opened submissions for the 2023 US Lab. Now in its 9th year, TWL is
the only programme in the world devoted exclusively to script and career development for women and nonbinary writers 40+. You can apply from anywhere in the world…

This Festival has grown into the premiere women's film festival in the US, with an Oscar-style awards gala, important prizes, celebrity guests and competitive submission fees! 

The City of Angels Women's Film Festival aims to empower and connect women and those identifying as female in…

Be among the next batch of filmmakers showing your efforts at Show Me Shorts 2023! The Academy Awards® qualifying festival is Aotearoa New Zealand’s leading international short film festival.

During 6-29 October 2023 Show Me Shorts will put on 100 screenings in 35 cinemas across…

Screenrights’ 2023 Cultural Fund is open for applications, with up to $250,000 in funding available for projects that respond to the annual focus of New Visions.

Continuing in its efforts to reduce barriers to entry and increase the diversity of funded initiatives, for the second…

Earlybird submissions are due by 31 March, so get cracking on yours today! NZWebfest accepts short films, animated shorts, podcasts, webseries and music videos. This big little festival has been running since 2015, and two WIFTies won gongs last year - Michelle Ang and Julie…

The Pan-Asian Screen Collective Shas extended its deadline for applications to Short Cuts, a development lab accompanied by one production grant of $15,000 to fund a scripted short film under 10 minutes in length.

Applications will now close on 20 March 2023 at 9:00am.

Designed…

The Smalls Film Festival showcases the very best short films and content from around the world and this year returns for its 16th annual edition. Submissions are open now and whether you're an established filmmaker or just starting out, The Smalls wants to hear from…

Vanessa Vandy is a cinematographer and director who grew up in New Zealand and Finland. A former athlete who represented Finland in the 2008 Olympics as a pole vaulter, she fell in love with film while pursuing her other passion, composing music, which led her…

Congratulations to our winners! 

1x Special Prize Pack (double pass, a coffee mug and tote bag)
Tracey Morley-Hall

3x double passes:
Amanda Evans
Ann Kidd
Renee Sheridan

Well you lucky members, we have a SPECIAL giveaway opportunity for you this week!

As well as a stash of double…

In our video slot this week is a film by Angharad Gladding.

Full of excited anticipation, a poet plans to go to a book party. Then along comes depression. A film about yearning simply to be able to clean your teeth and leave the house.

Support a fellow WIFTie and check out Tanya Wheeler’s new stageplay which debuts at The Pumphouse Theatre from 22 to 26 March.

It’s the award-winning Tanya’s third stage play and is based on events from her own life.

My Year With Lorraine is about two…

The Auckland Council’s proposed budget cuts will have a significantly detrimental effect on Auckland’s screen industry.

Tātaki Auckland Unlimited, the CCO that oversees the city’s major events, cultural activities and economic development would lose $44m of funding.

Screen Auckland is funded by Tātaki Auckland Unlimited…

On a more positive note, we congratulate Mark Westerby on his new role as Head of Attraction for Screen Wellington. It's a newly created role and Mark has been tasked with networking with the industry and lobbying on its behalf.  

Mark is the managing director…

Many of contributed to the Greenlit survey and we hope you'll be interested in these comprehensive results. This is Greenlit's first industry survey on environmentally sustainable production practice in Aotearoa’s screen sector.

Click here to read the report

Greenlit

Congratulations to Clemenger BBDO Wellington chief creative officer Brigid Alkema who has been appointed the chair of Clemenger Group’s global Creative Council. M+AD reports that Brigid will continue in her role at Clemenger Wellington while now supporting and mentoring the group’s creative leadership across Australia…

These workshops are fully funded and we encourage everyone in a position of responsibility to make the most of them and upskill accordingly.

This course will address predominately sexual harassment and also includes bullying, harassment, definitions, disclosures, and respectful behaviours in the workplace.
Be a…

Here's something to add to your watchlists. Catch Not Even, a six part comedy drama series co-directed by Ainsley Gardiner (Ngāti Awa, Te Whānau-a Apanui, Ngāti Pikiao and Whakatāhea). The brainchild of Dana Leaming (Ngā Puhi, Te Rarawa), who co-directed with Gardiner, it focuses on…

DEGANZ is calling for mid-career women directors and editors to apply for its Creative Confidence workshop. If you're a woman aged in your 30s-50s, apply now. The extended deadline is 5pm Wednesday 15 March - that's today! This workshop with acclaimed filmmaker Dame Gaylene Preston…

Applications are open now for the One World Media Fellowship, aimed at aspiring journalists and filmmakers.

The OWMF supports new talent from around the world to produce engaging and creative media in the global south.

Working in film, print, audio or multimedia, the Fellows’ projects…

It’s one thing to be able to write funny ideas but can you also write a story within 23-30 pages? And create characters that stand-out in a world that we’d want to come back and see in the next episode?

Whether your idea uses a…

Doco lovers, clear your diaries! The 18^th Doc Edge International Documentary Film Festival is happening in Auckland, Wellington, and nationwide online from 24 May to 9 July 2023. See the important dates below: 

Auckland Festival

26 April Special Event and Programme launch at SkyCity Theatre

Hear from three outstanding writer-directors at the upcoming Script To Screen TALK. Paula Whetu Jones (Te Aitanga a Mahaki, Whakatohea Ngati Porou) (Whina, Waru), Welby Ings (Punch, Sparrow), Mathew J. Saville (Juniper, Dive) will discuss their recent experience weaving screen stories from truth, memory, and…

A round of applause to all those whose recent funding applications to the NZFC were successful. We've listed you and your projects below:

Feature Film Finishing Grant:

Tom Sainsbury is the NZ writer for Loop Track, a drama about a hiker on the verge of…

South Pacific Pictures has released a report on the cultural and economic impact of Shortland Street as an acknowledgement of its 30 Year tenure on New Zealand television screens.

The report titled ‘Study On The Impact Of Shortland Street’ was commissioned by South Pacific Pictures…

Congratulations to Madeleine Hakaraia de Young who will step into the role of Māoriland Film Festival Director (MFF), taking over from Libby Hakaraia.

Under Libby’s ten years of stewardship, the MFF has grown to be the largest Indigenous film festival in the world, connecting audiences…

Well done Sharlene George of Sweet Shop & Green and the team of Kings, one of 17 feature films to receive story development funding from Screen Australia. Sharlene is the Executive Producer on Kings which follows the story of Toby, a talented-but-impressionable young Tongan rugby…

Save the date! Join the teams of Atlas Lens Co. and ImageZone in Auckland for a casual yet epic evening of drinks, nibbles and good conversation!

Atlas Lens Co will be showcasing some of their lenses and cinematographer and WIFT NZ member Vanessa Vandy will…

The documentary Signed, Theo Schoon is touring the mid-lower South Island - get along to see what made this mercurial and often controversial artist tick.

Jan Bieringa is the creative producer on this doco directed by her late husband Luit Bieringa (Ans Westra: Private Journeys/Public…

Homai te paki paki to our members whose projects have been greenlit thanks to Fresh Shorts funding. Victoria Boult is writer/director of Invisible Dragons and Sophie Black is writer/director of Tall Hours. They're in two of six filmmaking teams selected to receive development support, and…

Have a night at the flicks in Titirangi's beautiful Lopdell House. This thoughtful and creative FREE short film festival is curated by filmmaker Lula Cucchiara and hosted by director Aidee Walker. It's happening on Thursday 20 April 2023, 7:00 pm - 11:00 pm and is…

Élisabeth Denis' propposed documentary aims to gently unearth the untold stories of migrants in New Zealand. There is a link between migration and mental health, and we want to talk about it, she says.

However, she needs financial help to do this and is running…

There are still places available for the workshop in Auckland on Friday. These workshops are fully funded and we encourage everyone in a position of responsibility to make the most of them and upskill accordingly.

This course will address predominately sexual harassment and also includes…

Wellington-based April Phillips is part of the Femme Natale sketch comedy stage show about parenting. Having started with three seasons at Bats Theatre in Wellington, they've been touring the show to different centres around the country for the last five years and have now been…

Maru Nihoniho (Ngāti Porou, Te Whānau a Apanui, Ngāi Tahu, MNZM), is the founder and Managing Director of Metia Interactive, an award-winning Auckland studio which specialises in designing and creating game art assets. 

Maru and her team at Metia created the company's flagship video game…

Congratulations to our members who are recipients of funding from Screen CanterburyNZ and ChristchurchNZ for the Screen CanterburyNZ Production Grant.

Emma Slade, Roxi Bull and Victoria Dabbs of Firefly Films are producing Bookworm, a family adventure comedy. Elijah Wood is a washed-up American magician reunited…

We're sharing this update from Wairoa Māori Film Festival organiser Leo Koziol. It's wonderful to know that the Festival will be going ahead again this year - we look forward to presenting the WIFT Mana Wāhine Award.

The Festival team was in the process of…

It's almost impossible that you could have missed this news, but just in case you have, the New Zealand Film Commission (NZFC) has appointed Taima Anne (Annie) Murray (Te Arawa) to the position of Chief Executive Officer for a five-year term. 

NZFC Board Chair Alastair…

The team at RNZ has been busy publishing a solid bunch of commissioned programmes, including Meng by WIFT NZ member Julie Zhu. Their first RFP of the year is out, you'll find all the details from RNZ below:

Platform Support Opportunities

NZOA - Round Tahi: Primary Platform…

Applications for Early Development Funding and Documentary Development Funding close at 1pm on the following deadlines: 

• Tuesday 29 May 2023 
• Monday 7 August 2023 
• Tuesday 16 October 2023 

Applications for Feature Film Production Investment and Feature Film Post Production Investment close at 1pm on the…

TMP has released its latest RFPs one for Special Projects and one for General Audiences.

You'll find al the details at the links below, but the deadlines are:

Mixed Platform: Special Projects
Click here for funding criteria 

DEADLINE 14 April, 5pm

DECISION 5 May

Mixed…

There is so much to absorb in this report, however we highlight one extraordinary figure – directors of children’s content were split 68% male to 32% female. How can this be regarded as acceptable in this day and age? We have a stack of female…

At this Script To Screen Talk join three creative producers who are working alongside international collaborators to produce and share New Zealand screen stories for children.

Fiona Copland, Hana Miller, and Nic Marshall will sit in conversation, sharing their unique pathways within the children’s screen…

It's time to make up for the lockdowns and restrictions and have a BIG night of celebration! The New Zealand Cinematography Awards are on 13 May and with more than 200 entries the organisers say it could be the biggest Awards yet!

The evening kicks…

Cantabrians, apply now for this new initiative, developed especially for screen creatives in Waitaha Canterbury wanting to advance their careers.

Developed by Script to Screen, in collaboration with Te Puna Matarau, the programme is suitable for emerging and mid-career practitioners. To be eligible, applicants must…

The Goethe-Institut presents 20 select films that look back at the past 20 years of new German filmmaking. On display is the cinema of a generation that is not afraid to experiment and challenges the film world with new perspectives. The films will be online…

Join screen industry and screen education specialists from around the Otago & Southland region for a series of entry-level workshops and training. Choose one or attend them all Camera, Grips, Sound, Locations, Production Office. Learn tikanga Māori for working in creative industries from experienced Ngāi…

We're sharing this survey from the Manatū Taonga | Ministry of Culture and Heritage that you may wish to take part in. It is part of an inquiry to better understand the issues, gaps and opportunities for Iwi, Hapū and Māori communities in protecting their…