This year the New Zealand Film Commission supported a record 13 feature films, 22 short films and administered grants for a further 25 film and television productions.
Ten NZFC supported films were released in cinemas with Mt. Zion earning the most at the NZ Box office and also proving a hit on screens in Australia.
White Lies has been submitted as the official New Zealand entry for consideration for Best Foreign Language film for the Academy Awards and Shopping won the Grand Prix of the Generation 14 plus International section for the best feature film at the Berlin International Film Festival. In addition the prestigious festival screened The Weight of Elephants and short film I’m Going to Mum’s as well as the Screen Production Incentive Fund-supported series Top of the Lake.
Top of the Lake and Shopping also screened at Sundance alongside short films Night Shift and The Cleanest Pig, while here in New Zealand The Orator (O le Tulefale) won best feature film at the 2012 New Zealand Film Awards.
The NZFC was also pleased to invest in a range of professional development opportunities independently and in partnership with industry organisations.
The NZFC invests in films that have the potential to connect with audiences here and overseas, achieve critical acclaim and develop filmmakers’ careers.
This year more than $11 million was committed to the production of 13 feature films, including one low-budget film and six documentaries. A new low-budget initiative was also supported.
Antarctica: A Year on Ice: A documentary written, directed and produced by Anthony Powell and co-written by Simon Price.
Beyond The Edge: A 3D documentary feature directed and written by Leanne Pooley and produced by Matthew Metcalfe.
Gardening with Soul: A documentary directed by Jess Feast and produced by Vicky Pope.
The Ground We Won: A documentary directed by Christopher Pryor and produced and written by Miriam Smith.
Hip Hop-eration: A documentary directed by Bryn Evans and produced by Paula Jones and Alex Lee.
Jojo Rabbit: A New Zealand/Germany co-production from writer/director Taika Waititi. It is being produced by Chelsea Winstanley.
Kiri Te Kanawa – My Breathing is Singing: A documentary that will be a New Zealand/German co-production directed by Michael Seresin, written by Ian Fraser and produced by Robert Boyd-Bell and Tom Parkinson.
Orphans & Kingdoms: A dramatic feature supported through the final year of the low-budget initiative Escalator. It is written and directed by Paolo Rotondo, produced by Fraser Brown and executive produced by Philippa Campbell.
The Pa Boys: A dramatic feature developed in partnership with Te Paepae Ataata. It is written and directed by Himiona Grace and produced by Ainsley Gardiner and Mina Mathieson.
The Patriarch: A dramatic feature based on the Witi Ihimaera novel Bulibasha. It will be directed by Lee Tamahori, is written by John Collee and is being produced by Robin Scholes.
Slow West: A dramatic feature film that is a New Zealand/United Kingdom co-production. It is written and will be directed by John Maclean and produced by Rachel Gardner, Iain Canning, Emile Sherman and Conor McCaughan.
The Straggler: A New Zealand/Australia co-production and dramatic feature. It is written and will be directed by Jonathan Ogilvie and produced by Trevor Haysom.
Turbo Kid: A dramatic feature and co-production with Canada. It has been written by and will be directed by Anouk Whissell, Francois Simard and Yoann Whissell and produced by Ant Timpson, Tim Riley and Anne-Marie Gelinas.
Make My Horror Movie: A low-budget initiative following on from Make My Movie. Creative teams will compete to secure the financing of the film to be produced by Andrew Beattie and Hugh Sundae and executive produced by Ant Timpson, Greg Newman, Badie Ali and Hamza Ali. The project will be selected in 2014.
Make My Horror Movie is also supported by The New Zealand Herald, MPI Pictures, Dark Sky Films, Flicks.co.nz and Images and Sound.
Earlier this month Chair Patsy Reddy announced Dave Gibson will be taking up the role of Chief Executive of the New Zealand Film Commission in the new year.
Dave Gibson is the founder of the Wellington production company The Gibson Group, a company with a 35 year history of working in film, television and visitor attractions in New Zealand and internationally.
We are pleased to announce that Faith Dennis has moved to the role of Marketing and Sales Executive. Faith is well-known through her work as Development Coordinator. We're pleased to welcome our new Development Coordinator, Linda Halle, who begins early in January and can be contacted on development@nzfilm.co.nz
We’ve also welcomed Tim Hope, who joined us in November as our new Film Festival Co-ordinator. Tim comes to us from a background in production and has worked on Tintin, The Lovely Bones and The Hobbit films. You can get in touch with him on tim@nzfilm.co.nz