In London cinemas
Duncan Sarkies’ 2006 movie Out of the Blue – a dramatic reconstruction of the 1990 Aramoana massacre – is showing in London this week and continues to receive favourable reviews. The Guardian…
News of New Zealanders via Global Media
Tour of Auckland
The Flight of the Conchord’s manager Murray Hewitt, Aucklander Rhys Darby, introduces the Guardian‘s Sarah Bourn to New Zealand’s largest city and his favourite place, One Tree Hill. “I used to go there a…
Portable stories
Wellington production company Gibson Group’s made-for-mobile drama series My Story has been purchased by French conglomerate Lagardère Group from ohm:tv, a Cologne-based developer and distributer of TV formats, programmes and mobile phone content. Produced…
Donaldson’s heist
Director Roger Donaldson’s The Bank Job is the latest flick from the film-maker who began his career in New Zealand with Sleeping Dogs in 1977. Bank Job is “solid entertainment”, according to Los Angeles…
NZ Whaler Doco
The BBC is making a documentary about ex-Royal New Zealand Montague Whaler, the Essex which sunk in the South Pacific in 1819 whilst chasing an aggressive sperm whale. The Essex was twice rammed, the…
Vintner Role for Paikea
New Zealand actress Keisha Castle-Hughes, has begun filming The Vintner’s Luck, based on Elizabeth Knox’s novel of the same name and directed by Niki Caro. Castle-Hughes told the New Zealand Herald she…
Hobbit back in Jackson’s court
Peter Jackson has settled his long-running legal dispute with New Line and will make The Hobbit for the studio as originally planned. Jackson and his creative partner Fran Walsh have announced that they will…
It’s All About Murray
NZ comedian Rhys Darby earned a special mention in The Guardian‘s entertainment guide awards for 2007. Darby was named Best Supporting Character for his role as beleaguered band manager Murray Hewitt in Flight of…
Making a Splash with Splatter
A current trend for home-grown horror in NZ film is noted by Variety magazine. The article points to recent features Black Sheep, The Tattooist and The Ferryman as examples of the genre by first-time…
Good morning Beijing
NZ journalist Edwin Maher, the first Western news anchor on Chinese state television, has received China’s highest honour for foreigners. Maher was awarded the Chinese government’s “Friendship Award” in a ceremony at the Great…
First NZ doco selected for Sundance
A NZ documentary has won a place at the Sundance Film Festival for the first time. The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins by Auckland filmmaker Pietra Brettkelly will compete in the World…
Edge Treatment for Classic Americana
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, the new film by director Andrew Dominik, earned four stars out of five in The Guardian. “This is a real success for New Zealand-born,…
Guitar-based Digi-bongo Acapella-rap-funk-comedy Folk gets Sexy
Wellingtonians of the Year Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement (AKA Flight of the Conchords) have made Salon‘s ‘Sexiest Man Living’ list for 2007. Salon promotes its list as an alternative to People‘s better…
Bags of talent
NZ filmmaker Haydn Butler is the only non-US finalist in an online advertising competition sponsored by Al Gore’s Current TV. Butler’s clip The Bags was selected from more than 300 entries to make the…
Love, wine and angels in Auckland
Whale Rider director Niki Caro’s new project has made its first pre-sales. The Vintner’s Luck, Caro’s much-anticipated adaptation of the novel by Elizabeth Knox, has sold to Icon in the UK, Dendy in…
The next great American host
NZ television personality Dominic Bowden is taking his hosting skills to the US, where he will front new FOX reality series The Next Great American Band. In NZ, Bowden has hosted Deal or…
NZ daredevil lands Lost role
Stunt-woman Zoe Bell has landed another high profile acting role in the US. Fresh from playing herself in Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof, Bell has secured a part in the hit TV series Lost….
An actor’s dream
Actor Casey Afleck described NZ-born director Andrew Dominick as a “genius” while promoting Dominick’s new film, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. “Someone said: ‘The man who made Chopper…
King Talks Technology
The Guardian interviewed Black Sheep director Jonathan King about his favourite gadgets on the eve of his film’s UK release. King’s favourite piece of technology is his Apple iBook G4 laptop – “I use…
Wellywood and Bollywood Unite
The NZ and Indian governments are to negotiate a film co-production agreement, whereby resources will be pooled to benefit filmmakers in both countries. “Films made jointly by New Zealand and Indian producers would qualify as works with…
Power Producers
Queenstown-born film producer Tim Bevan (right) features in Vanity Fair‘s annual ‘New Establishment’ power rankings, along with business partner Eric Fellner. Bevan and Fellner founded British film powerhouse Working Title in 1984….
Sibling success
Paul and Kahra Scott-James’s GRAHAM is one of 25 films selected for competition at Filminute 2007, an online festival for 60-second films. GRAHAM was chosen from a pool of 800 entries from 45 different…
Success for stylish vampire flick
NZ vampire film Perfect Creature has been sold into nearly every territory in the world and is receiving rave reviews on its official release. The second feature by writer/director Glenn Standring (The…
The Funniest Thing on TV
Guardian reviewer Tim Jonze has dubbed Flight of the Conchords “the funniest thing on TV” as the cult HBO series goes to air on the BBC. Conchords stars NZ comics Jemaine Clement and Bret…
An Icon Re-imagined
NZ-born director Andrew Dominik has followed up his award-winning film Chopper with a psychological Western epic starring Brad Pitt. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford debuted at this month’s…
Conchords Take Flight in UK
Flight of the Conchords, the HBO series starring NZ comedians Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement, is ranked eighth on the Guardian‘s 50 must-see shows. Described as “a downbeat winner”, Conchords debuts on BBC4 this…
Back to baddies
Russell Crowe has impressed critics with his latest role in 3:10 to Yuma. After a string of less successful films, Crowe is back to what he does best: playing “the charming baddie”. A remake…
Film’s Future in Good Hands
Wall Street Journal film critic Joe Morgenstern paid Peter Jackson a visit at his Miramar studios on a recent trip to NZ. The pair discussed their favourite movies, the future of special effects and…
Auckland films Venice-bound
Two short films by lecturers and a student at Auckland University have been accepted for competition at the Venice Film Festival. Coffee and Allah, written and produced by senior film lecturers Shuchi Kothari and…
Home-grown Horror at Frightfest
Two NZ films made the line-up for this year’s Frightfest, the UK’s leading fantasy and horror film festival. “Ovine horror comedy” Black Sheep and “the unclassifiable – and absolutely hilarious” The Devil Dared…
The Real Deal
The Guardian gave its readers a heads-up on NZ stuntwoman Zoe Bell, in its regular ‘First Sight’ column. The 28-year-old has forged an impressive career doubling actors such as Lucy Lawless, Uma Thurman and…
LonelyGirl signs off
NZ internet sensation Jessica Lee Rose has ended her starring role on the hit web drama LonelyGirl15. Rose’s character, Bree, was killed off by a sinister religious cult known as The Order, ending her…
Stuntwoman turned star
NZ stuntwoman Zoe Bell is described as a “bona fide butt-kicker” in an August Marie Claire profile. Bell has gone from doubling Lucy Lawless in Xena and Uma Thurman in Kill Bill to…
Future of NZ film lies in Asia
NZ filmmakers are increasingly looking to Asia to fill the void left by the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Annual production financing in NZ soared from $146 to $402 million between 1998 and 2001,…
Paquin up for Emmy
Anna Paquin has been nominated for an Outstanding Supporting Actress Emmy for her role in the HBO telefilm Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. Based on Dee Alexander Brown’s classic 1971 book, Bury My…
Weisz on board for Lovely Bones
Oscar-winning English actress Rachel Weisz has signed on for Peter Jackson’s The Lovely Bones. Weisz will play the mother of the film’s dead narrator, in a role that has been significantly expanded from…
New York falls for Sand Dancer
Sand Dancer, Valerie Reid’s documentary about Christchurch sand artist Peter Donnelly, received an honourable mention at New York’s Tribeca Film Festival in March. The award is the latest in a string of wins for…
Top of His Game
New Zealander Bob Hayward has found success in the highly competitive US film industry. Based in Los Angeles, Hayward is the Chief Operating Officer and founding partner of Summit Entertainment, an independent distribution company…
Conchords viral captures US
Flight of the Conchords, the HBO series based on the NZ comedy act of the same name, has premiered in the US. HBO launched the series with a headline-grabbing viral campaign, which allowed…
Pixel perfect
Hamilton-born Nick Craven was one of a 35-strong team of animators working on the third Shrek instalment. Fellow New Zealander Andrew Adamson, who wrote and directed the first two films, provided the story…
The Rings Effect Continues
NZ features in a new weekly video series on international branding practices by British marketing guru Martin Lindstrom. In Altering the Brand of a Country: How Movies Hurt Columbia and Help New Zealand, Lindstrom…
On and off-screen success story
Anna Paquin’s career has soared to new heights since her starring role in the blockbuster X-Men franchise. Her upcoming films include Margaret and Trick r’ Treat, and she stars in (and executive produces…
Campion speaks out for women in film
Jane Campion has spoken out about the lack of female filmmakers while being honoured for her own achievements at the Cannes Film Festival. The New Zealander was one of 35 high-profile directors – the…
Tintin gets Jackson treatment
Dream Works has hired Peter Jackson and Steven Spielberg to direct and produce three feature films based on the popular Tintin comic series. According to Variety, each filmmaker will direct one of the movies,…
DreamWorks nets Jackson
DreamWorks SKG has won a week-long Hollywood bidding war for Peter Jackson’s latest film. Jackson made his screen adaptation of Alice Sebold’s novel The Lovely Bones available on the open market last week,…
NZ Preacher Battles US Atheists
Christchurch-born evangelist Ray Comfort fronted a controversial debate over the existence of God on US TV this month. Comfort (pictured left) and his preaching partner, child actor Kirk Cameron, squared off against two members…
Surfing the Menu in NZ
NZ chef Mark Gardner will co-present the fourth season of popular cooking show Surfing the Menu, with London-based Australian Ben O’Donoghue. Gardner, 29, replaces O’Donoghue’s previous co-presenter, Australian Curtis Stone. The fourth season comprises…
Webby Celeb
Mt Maunganui raised Jessica Rose has been named best actress in the 11th annual Webby Film and Video Awards in a special achievement category, for her performance in the fictional YouTube video blog…
Travelling in the reel
Adam Hartzell, a writer for US film blog Daily Greencine, “travels, reads, watches and sips his way through NZ”. On his five-day tour he (ironically) attends the Latin American Film Festival in Wellington, the…
Creepy sheep
NZ horror film Black Sheep has impressed international critics with its blend of low-budget gore and on-the-nose humour. Since its premiere at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival, Black Sheep has won the…
Canada, your time is NOW
NZ adventurer Phil Keoghan is about to launch his hit TV series No Opportunity Wasted (NOW) in Canada. In each half-hour episode of NOW – based on his best-selling book of the same name…
Fight night
Two New Zealanders have been nominated for the 2007 Taurus World Stunt Awards. Ben Cooke (pictured) and Kirk Maxwell are both up for Best Fight, for their work in Casino Royale and…
Keats Inspires New Campion Film
The doomed love affair between English poet John Keats and his neighbour, Fanny Brawne, is to be the subject of a literary biopic written and directed by Oscar-winning NZ filmmaker, Jane Campion. Keats and…
Cliff’s time in the sun
NZ actor Cliff Curtis has a starring role in Sunshine, the latest critically acclaimed film by English director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, 28 Days Later). The film is a futuristic sci-fi thriller about…
International appeal
Valerie Reid’s Sand Dancer has won Best Documentary in its first US screening, at the Foursite Film Festival in Utah. The award is the latest in a string of wins for the…
Comic success stories
Taika Waititi’s debut feature Eagle vs Shark has won the award for best screenplay at the US Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado. The film, which also screened at South by Southwest in…
