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Arts
Artist Matthew Couper Fuses Vegas and NZ
In Matthew Couper’s exhibition, From Dust to Water, the New Zealand-born Las Vegas-based artist uses the language of symbols – skeletons and cacti, blenders and playing cards – to…
Photographer Derek Henderson Is in Demand
Photographer Derek Henderson rates his career shooting fashion, travel and art photography as mediocre, but a quick look at his credentials and it’s plain to see he’s being coy….
Rambert Chief Mark Baldwin’s Final Commission
New Zealander Mark Baldwin, the “venerable” artistic director of Rambert, the UK’s leading contemporary dance company, is stepping down from the role to devote more time to choreographic work….
A New NYC Neighbourhood
Commissioned by the New Zealand Consulate in the USA, designer Lydia Starkey illustrated a map of all the great NZ establishments in New York. The map, titled ‘Little New…
Jane Campion Rewatches Her Own Classic
One of the world’s most unconventional filmmakers, New Zealander Jane Campion talks with The Guardian about the end of the patriarchy, doing away with decorum, and how losing her…
Folk Singer Mel Parsons Touring US
Award-winning singer-songwriter New Zealander Mel Parsons, 36, recently performed as part of the Concerts in the Woods series in Coyle, Washington.
“We are very lucky to have Mel Parsons make…
TV Host Clarke Gayford on Fatherhood
Less than a month away from the birth – which will make Jacinda Ardern the first serving head of government since Benazir Bhutto to have a baby – television…
Julian Dennison Isn’t in a Hurry to Grow Up
The 15-year-old New Zealand actor Julian Dennison talks to GQ magazine about his starring role in Deadpool 2 – even though he’s not old enough to see it.
Dennison is…
Pop Singer Robinson Has Nothing to Regret
New Zealand singer-songwriter Robinson, 21, has been likened to other local trailblazers who are known for leading fans along a pathway set out by their own standards while exploring…
David Metcalf Puts On Bali Indigenous Celebration
Wellington-born professional photographer David Metcalf, who is based in Bali, and Emmanuela Dewi Shinta, founder of Ranu Welum (Living Water), are the founders of the inaugural Indigenous Celebration, which…
Thomasin McKenzie Steals the Film in Leave No Trace
Debra Granik’s third feature, Leave No Trace, which stretches the theme of life on the margins to breaking point, is already being talked of as one of the year’s…
Heartthrob KJ Apa Answers Some Tricky Questions
KJ Apa, the New Zealand import turned Riverdale star, captured hearts (and Instagram followers) when the show premiered in 2017. Riverdale was just renewed for its third…
Marlon Williams Offers Something for Everyone
Christchurch-born singer-songwriter Marlon Williams is currently touring New Zealand promoting his second studio album Make Way for Love. His recent performance in Melbourne is reviewed by Eve Fisher for…
Ngā Parirau o te Kārearea a Spectacular EP
New Zealand-born experimental producer Fis and sound artist Rob Thorne’s collaborative EP Ngā Parirau o te Kārearea, a follow up to last year’s acclaimed Clear Stones, is included in…
Genre-Defying Kimbra Traverses New Territory
There’s something that connects the music of Skrillex and Paul Simon – some place where these opposite ends of the musical spectrum meet. New Zealander Kimbra, 28, is sure…
Leave No Trace with Thomasin McKenzie Cannes Hit
“Debra Granik is the exceptional film-maker who directed Winter’s Bone in 2010, launching the career of Jennifer Lawrence, and now she returns with this deeply intelligent, complex, finely tuned…
Anthony McCarten Freddy Mercury Biopic Trailer Out
“The first footage of Bohemian Rhapsody will rock you,” according to Esquire magazine. Penned by New Zealand-born Anthony McCarten, the upcoming Queen biopic, starring Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury…
Autoportrait Wins Deutsche Börse Photography Prize
The 2018 Deutsche Börse photography prize has been awarded to the New Zealander Luke Willis Thompson, 30, for Autoportrait, a film installation about the partner of Philando Castile, who…
Photographer Launches Project to Prevent Bullying Against Redheads
New Zealand photographer Bianca Duimel “is hoping to change the conversation around red hair with a powerful art project.” Sarah Young reports for The Independent.
“I…
Kim Chambers Swims Like No Other
Kim Chambers, a former ballerina who grew up on a sheep farm in the King Country has done what no other woman has yet achieved: swum the world’s most…
New All Blacks Documentary “Looks Absolutely Breathtaking”
“All or Nothing: New Zealand All Blacks is a new six-episode series and it promises to be a belter,” writes Paul Moore in an article for
Brazil Readies for Connan Mockasin
New Zealand singer-songwriter Connan Mockasin will head to Brazil in November after the release of two new albums in October.
“There were some invitations to go,…
Unique Sneak Preview for Effects Man Matt Aitken
New Zealand-born VFX supervisor Matt Aitken talks about Marvel’s “unusual” move that helped make the biggest superhero blockbuster ever, Avengers: Infinity War.
Aitken’s credits included an Academy Award nomination for…
Actor Julian Dennison is Firefist in Deadpool 2
Julian Dennison is living the dream. The 15-year-old actor from Lower Hutt was hand picked by Ryan Reynolds to star in Deadpool 2, which hits cinemas on 16 May.
As…
Illustrator Andrew Archer’s Sci-Fi Vision
Self-taught illustrator and art director New Zealander Andrew Archer was commissioned by London-based publisher The Folio Society to create the cover illustration and a series of internal artworks exploring…
NZ Photographer Explores Decline of Tokyo’s Ultramodern Dreams
“Japan is famed for its ultramodern cityscapes. But what happens when the ultramodern becomes old?” Photographer Cody Ellingham is using landscape photography skills developed in New Zealand to explore…
The Beths Look to the Future
The Beths is an Auckland guitar pop group who recently signed to Washington DC-based Carpark Records for the release of their debut album Future Me Hates Me, due out…
Glass Artist Ruth Allen off to Float in Venice
A glass dress created by New Zealand multi-media artist Ruth Allen is one of among 30 designs to feature in the international Glass Art Society’s Fashion Show being held in…
Filmmaker Pietra Brettkelly Celebrates Guo Pei
“When I was little, I didn’t know what fashion was. The word didn’t exist,” Guo Pei tells Whakatane-born documentarian Pietra Brettkelly in Yellow Is Forbidden, a new film charting…
Fire Spinner Hale Wilson Showcases Moves in Darwin
For New Zealand-born Samoan Hale Wilson, the art of fire spinning honours his culture and family history at the same time as looking cool.
Wilson has carried his Samoan fire…
World Famous Parris Goebel On Her Trip to the Top
She’s made her mark as a fierce and unstoppable choreographer but it’s New Zealander Parris Goebel’s work ethic and ability to overcome barriers that has allowed her to emerge…
What We Do in the Shadows Gets TV Reboot
A long-in-the-works half-hour television comedy based on the 2014 mockumentary horror film What We Do in the Shadows, co-written and co-directed by and starring Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi,…
Andrew Niccol’s Latest Film Smart and Stylish
Clive Owen and Amanda Seyfried star in Anon, a “timely Netflix-bound cyberthriller from The Truman Show and In Time creator New Zealander Andrew Niccol”. Stephen Dalton reviews the film…
John Cavill Wins Emmy for Scars of Nanking
New Zealand cinematographer John Cavill has won an Emmy – Outstanding Cinematography – for American/Chinese co-production Scars of Nanking at the Daytime Creative Arts Emmy…
Zico O’Neill Captures Life off the Beaten Track
Photographer Zico O’Neill is known for his breathtaking, desaturated photography of little-visited locations far from his home in New Zealand. Since 2010, he’s made a point to spread his…
Sam Rockwell, ScarJo Join Waititi’s Jojo Rabbit
After breaking out in a major way in Hollywood by directing the critically acclaimed action-comedy Thor: Ragnarok, New Zealander Taika Waititi’s…
Gang of Youths’ Max Dunn Talks to Rolling Stone
Founded in Sydney six years ago, Gang of Youths, which includes New Zealander Max Dunn on bass, are getting their share of attention in America after releasing two hit…
Exhibition of Colliding Worlds on in London
Work by ill-fated illustrators aboard Captain James Cook’s first journey to the Pacific sit alongside revelatory images by a Polynesian high priest in a haunting exhibition on now at…
Luke Willis Thompson in Running for Turner Prize
Fijian-New Zealand artist Luke Willis Thompson, 30, is one of four candidates vying for this year’s Turner Prize, a shortlist, according to the Financial Times, focusing on conflict, crime…
Russian Film Fest Prize for Kieran Charnock
New Zealander Kieran Charnock, 26, has won best actor at the Moscow International Film Festival for his role in the independent film Stray. The award…
Marlon Williams Accompanies Wild Wild Country
Despite working with a “micro-budget”, music supervisor Chris Swanson weaves an inspired sonic accompaniment to the Netflix hit Wild Wild Country, a documentary about the controversial Indian guru Bhagwan…
DIY Picks Matthew Young’s New Single
Every weekday, Britain’s DIY magazine brings you one essential new release to get obsessed with. This recent ‘Neu Pick’ comes from Auckland-based Matthew Young.
Young is releasing new EP Fruit…
Scott Dixon Competes on American Ninja Warrior
New Zealand four-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon will enter the realm of reality TV when he auditions in Indianapolis this week for American Ninja Warrior.
Dixon, 37, nicknamed “The Iceman,”…
Rube Goldberg Fan Joseph Herscher Shares Tricks
New Zealander Joseph Herscher’s foolproof way to roast turkey involves an axe, a back massager, various magnets, catapults, and a small dog. His Rube Goldberg machines to facilitate power…
Kimbra Displays Impressive Range On ‘Primal Heart’
“If there’s any musical justice, Kimbra’s third studio album should be the one that finally catapults the New Zealander to the acclaim she deserves,” writes Mark Kennedy in a…
UMO Frontman Ruban Nielson Keeps it Dumb
On 2015’s Multi-Love, New Zealand-born Ruban Nielson, 38, frontman of Unknown Mortal Orchestra, saw his personal life laid out and analysed. Now, on the band’s fourth LP Sex &…
Roger Donaldson On ‘Sleeping Dogs’ And ‘Cocktail’
“Cocktail, No Way Out, The Bounty, Species, The World’s Fastest Indian, Dante’s Peak – director Roger Donaldson’s resume is brimming with crowd-pleasing Hollywood movies, some of them seminal,” writes…
US-Based Radio Exec Andrew Jeffries Loves LA
Private shows by the likes of Ed Sheeran and Coldplay are all in a day’s work for Los Angeles based New Zealander Andrew Jeffries, who is executive vice president…
Sweet Country’s Sam Neill Marks Milestone
As is the case with many a beloved screen actor, everyone has their own mental image of Sam Neill, Karen Han writes for the Village Voice. For some, it’s…
Jamie McClennan Takes His Family on Tour
New Zealand-born songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jamie McClennan and Scottish singer Emily Smith have been making country folk music together for 15 years. Now they tour for the first time…
Neil Finn to Join Fleetwood Mac
Legendary band Fleetwood Mac has announced that Neil Finn of Crowded House and Mike Campbell of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers will replace departing guitarist Lindsey Buckingham.
The band’s firing…
Photographer Michael Anderton Moves to Kildare
New Zealander Michael Anderton, who has set up a photographic gallery in Allenwood, has said that moving to the West Kildare village inspired him to develop his photography hobby.
As…
Lorde Scripts a Party and Then Brings It
Lorde’s “fast-paced, yet emotionally resonant show at TD Garden” in Boston “was a superlative showcase” for her second album Melodrama, Maura Johnston writes in a review of the recent…
Brent Williams Charts Journey Through Depression
Ten years after his symptoms first took hold of him, New Zealander Brent Williams has written a graphic novel that is part memoir and part self-help book. Out of…
Karl Urban in Dubai for Comic Con
New Zealand actor 45-year-old Karl Urban “is basically Comic Con personified”, according to Arab News, “with a deep sci-fi fantasy pedigree running from Xena: Warrior Princess through Hercules: The…
NZ’s Global Winners Celebrated in New Series Dream Catchers
Many Kiwis who touch down in the UK for their OE or holidays “end up staying and living their dreams on the other side of the world.” Inspiring series…
