LeeTamahori
- Director
Lee Tamahori worked his way up the filmmaking ranks, before debuting as a feature director with 1994's Once Were Warriors. The portrait of a violent marriage became the most successful film in Kiwi history, and won international acclaim. Between Warriors and 2016's Mahana, Tamahori worked mainly overseas, where he directed everything from The Sopranos to 007 blockbuster Die Another Day.
Screenography
Biography
Lee Tamahori won acclaim with his first feature film in 1994, an adaptation of the Alan Duff novel Once Were Warriors. Tamahori had worked in the New Zealand film industry for more than a decade before Warriors made his name. After he directed movies largely beyond New Zealand shores — including James Bond blockbuster Die Another Day, and thriller The Edge.
Awards
2025 New Zealand Screen Awards/Ngā Taonga Whakaata O Aotearoa
Directors and Editors Guild of Aotearoa New Zealand Best Director - Drama Feature: for The Convert
2017 Rialto Channel New Zealand Film Awards (The Moas)
Nominated for Best Film: Mahana
Nominated for Best Director: for Mahana
“It didn't change the nature of the society, but I said from the get-go, 'If one woman gets out of an abusive relationship because of this picture, I'll be a happy man.'”
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