Monday 22 August 2022

Two New Zealand Films Selected for
Toronto International Film Festival

Tearepa Kahi’s action thriller Muru will premiere in the opening weekend of the Contemporary World Cinema programme of the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival in September.  Also selected is New Zealand/Australia co-production We Are Still Here. You can read the full press release here.

International News

Pearl, directed by Ti West, will have its world premiere out of competition at the Venice Film Festival. The North American premiere will follow in the Midnight Madness programme of the Toronto International Film Festival. The prequel to X, both were filmed back to back in Wellington and Whanganui, New Zealand. Produced by A24 (Get Out, Moonlight, Irma Vep) the film stars Mia Goth and New Zealanders Tandi Wright and Matthew Sunderland.
 

Whina is now in its ninth week of release with a NZ box office of over
$1.25m.The film continues to screen in cinemas nationwide. You can view the trailer here.

Festival and Market News

Screening in official selection at CinefestOz is We Are Still Here, written and directed by Aotearoa New Zealand’s Renae Maihi, Tim Worrall & Richard Curtis, Miki Magasiva & Mario Gaoa, Tiraora Reweti & Chantelle Burgoyne and Australia’s Samuel Nuggin-Paynter & Beck Cole, Danielle MacLean, Dena Curtis and Tracey Rigney, produced by Mia Henry-Teirney, Toni Stowers and Mitchell Stanley.

Also selected to screen at CinefestOz is Gloriavale, written by Noel Smyth, directed and produced by Noel Smyth and Fergus Grady. This will be the film's Australian premiere. The festival runs August 23-28. 

Five New Zealand films screened at Edinburgh International Film Festival, August 12-20. Whina, directed by Paula Whetu Jones and James Napier Robertson, written by Paula Whetu Jones, James Napier Robertson and James Lucas and produced by Matthew Metcalfe and Tainui Stephens; Nude Tuesday, directed by Armagan Ballantyne, produced by Emma Slade, Virginia Whitwell and Nick Batzias and based on a screenplay by Jackie van Beek from a story devised by herself and Ballantyne; Juniper, written and directed by Matthew J Saville and produced by Desray Armstrong and Angela Littlejohn; and Millie Lies Low, directed by Michelle Savill, written by Michelle Savill and Eli Kent and also produced by Armstrong and Littlejohn; and independent short film fire in the water, fire in the sky by Miria George.

Mister Organ, written and directed by David Farrier, produced by Emma Slade and Alex Reed, will celebrate its world premiere at Fantastic Fest. Farrier will attend the festival, which runs from September 22-29 in Austin, Texas.

James & Isey is selected to screen at Kota Kinabalu International Film Festival in Malaysia, on September 23.

Night Raiders, written and directed by Danis Goulet, produced by Tara Woodbury, Paul Barkin, Ainsley Gardiner, Georgina Conder, Chelsea Winstanley and Eva Thomas is screening as part of the 2022 Smithsonian Native Cinema Showcase, Santa Fe programme. Also selected is Catalyst He Kauahi funded short film Washday, written and directed by Kath Akuhata-Brown, produced by Julian Arahanga and Verity Macintosh, and independent short film HAKA Haha, directed by Corinna Hunziker, produced by Justin Scott. The Showcase will be hosted at New Mexico History Museum, August 18-21.

Boy, written and directed by Taika Waititi, produced by Ainsley Gardiner, Cliff Curtis and Emanuel Michael is screening at Eye Filmmuseum Amsterdam, August 24.

Seattle International Film Festival hosted a Taika Waititi film showcase, as part of their ‘Auteur August’ programme. Two Cars, One Night, Eagle vs. Shark, Boy, What We Do in The Shadows, Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Thor: Ragnarok and Jojo Rabbit screened at the SIFF Cinema Egyptian, August 5-11.

Congratulations go to...

The many talented New Zealanders nominated for the 74th Emmy Awards. You can read the full list of Emmy nominees here.

These nominations are a fantastic achievement showcasing Aotearoa New Zealand's skilled practitioners and we look forward to the award ceremony on September 12. The NZFC wishes everyone the very best of luck.

Oscar Kightley, Briar March, Matthew Metcalfe, Leela Menon and Tim Woodhouse for Dawn Raid and Mothers of the Revolution nominated for the Grierson Awards. Mothers of the Revolution is a nominee in the Best Single Documentary - Domestic category and Dawn Raid in the Best Music Documentary category.

The Grierson Awards, also known at the British Documentary Awards, were established in 1972, and recognise documentaries that have made a significant contribution to the genre and that demonstrate quality, integrity, creativity, originality and overall excellence.

Director Josephine Stewart-Te Whiu (Ngāpuhi, Te Arawa) who has begun production on her debut feature film, written by Maddie Dai, and produced by Piki Films. You can read the press release here.

Locations Scout/Manager Sally Sherratt for her nomination at the 2022 LMGI Awards (Location Managers Guild International) in the period film category for The Power of the Dog.  Sally will be attending the LMGI Awards in LA in person – on 27 August and we wish her the very best.

Director Bala Murali Shingade and writer/producer Shreya Gejji for their film Perianayaki, receiving the Flicks Award for Best Short Film (a cash prize of $7500), and the Creative New Zealand Emerging Talent Award (a cash prize of $4000) in Whānau Mārama New Zealand International Film Festival's New Zealand's Best short film competition.

Actor Jeyagowri Sivakumaran, for receiving a New Zealand's Best Special mention for her performance in Perianayaki.

Directors Ben Bryan and Tom Scott for their short film Trees, receiving the New Zealand's Best Auckland Live Spirit of The Civic Award (a cash-prize of $4,000).

Writer/director Alex Liu for short film Smog, receiving the Ngā Whanaunga Māori Pasifika Shorts Wellington UNESCO City of Film Award for Best Film ($3,000 cash prize).

Writer/director Nicholas Riini for receiving a Ngā Whanaunga Māori Pasifika Shorts Special Mention for A Morning with Aroha.

Director Bala Murali Shingade for Perianayaki, receiving the New Zealand’s Best 2022 Audience Award, voted by audiences in Tāmaki Makaurau and Te Whanganui-a-Tara. Bala will receive a 25% share of box office takings from New Zealand's Best screenings in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin.

Writer/director Tajim Mohammed-Kapa for The Difference Between Pipi & Pūpū, receiving the Ngā Whanaunga Māori Pasifika Shorts Letterboxd Audience Award (a cash prize of $1,000), voted by audiences at screenings in Tāmaki Makaurau and Te Whanganui-a-Tara.

The newly completed Lane Street Studios in Upper Hutt and expansion of Studio West in Auckland, with two new stages now ready to be occupied by productions.

NZFC News

The NZFC farewells Dame Kerry Prendergast as Board Chair

We would like to acknowledge and thank Dame Kerry Prendergast as she finishes a remarkable six-year tenure as NZFC Chair.

It’s been an extraordinary time in the film sector throughout Dame Kerry’s two terms, marked by significant successes and huge growth both domestically and internationally.  In the 2020/2021 period, production expenditure was recorded at $985m. Since 2016 when she began her first term, the NZFC has funded 99 feature films, including titles like Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Cousins, Poi-e, The Power of the Dog, Whina, and Muru.

Dame Kerry’s commitment and dedication to the screen sector and to filmmakers has been outstanding. She has helped the NZFC secure a broad range of new funding programmes, supporting those whose voices have been historically under-represented, she has assisted in building and maintaining international relations, and helped the NZFC navigate the challenges the global pandemic has caused the screen sector. 

Once again, we would like to offer our sincere gratitude to Dame Kerry for her leadership of the NZFC, and the support and advocacy she has provided the wider screen industry over the last six years.  We wish her the very best for the future.

You can read the full press release here

Toi Mai Workforce Development Council and
NZFC NZ Industry Skills Survey

We are inviting practitioners across all content creation formats to provide insight into their education, skills and training needs.

Toi Mai Workforce Development Council and the NZFC are undertaking an industry survey as part of a wider Workforce Capability and Development Plan for the screen sector. We encourage employers and heads of departments, industry professionals, and emerging practitioners across film, TV, VFX, animation, radio (creating screen content), interactive, gaming and digital content creation to provide insight into their education, skills and training needs.

The Workforce Development Plan seeks better alignment between the Screen Industry and vocational training provision, with outcomes that will include a national, sector-informed workforce capability scan and advice to Tertiary Education Commission regarding longer-term investment in vocational education and training for careers in screen. This online survey will take approximately 15-20 minutes to complete. 

If you are responding as an individual:
http://survey.alchemer.com/s3/6331060/NZFC-Individual

If you are responding as an HoD or company:
http://survey.alchemer.com/s3/6329141/NZFC-Company

The survey will close on 2 September. For more information visit the Toi Mai website.

Filmmaker Opportunities

Vale Marshall Napier

It is with sadness, the NZFC acknowledges the passing of respected actor, playwright and artist, Marshall Napier (22 October 1951-14 August 2022).

You can read the NZFC's obituary for Marshall here.
 

Thanks for keeping up with what's going on at the NZFC. Got a suggestion? Email us at feedback@nzfilm.co.nz. 

Ngā mihi,

The NZFC Team