Simon Bennett

Simon Bennett has worked in TV drama as a storyliner, director and producer; as well as in programme development.

Bennett graduated from NZ Drama School Toi Whakaari in 1988. The same year, he joined forces with designer Simon Elson to relaunch Wellington's ailing Bats Theatre. Bennett later returned to Bats as a director, helming a hit season of Ken Duncum's Blue Sky Boys. The play starred future Shortland Streeters Tim Balme and Michael Galvin. 

Over the next few years Bennett worked across New Zealand as a freelance theatre director. His favourite projects included Watershed Theatre productions of the Stephen Sondheim musicals Assassins and Into the Woods.

In 1995 Bennett joined the first intake of the television directors training course at South Pacific Television. Then he began work on Shortland Street as a director, and in 1997 moved into producing and executive producing for the show. He also worked as a storyliner and director on episodes of small town drama Mercy Peak.

In 2000 Bennett left television to co-found touring theatre group the New Zealand Actors' Company, alongside Tim Balme, Robyn Malcolm, and Katie Wolfe. The  company toured successful productions of A Midsummer Night's Dream and Roger Hall's A Way of Life, before failing to find an audience with an adaptation of King Lear.

Bennett returned to South Pacific Pictures in time to oversee one of Shortland Street's big revamps. In 2004 he became SPP's Head of Drama, overseeing all of the company's film and TV drama projects. Since then he has been involved in development and production of Outrageous Fortune, Go Girls, Sione's Wedding, and James Griffin's Diplomatic Immunity. He also produced Maddigan's Quest, a multi award-winning co-production based on Margaret Mahy's novel Maddigan's Fantasia.

Bennett began directing episodes of Outrageous Fortune in the show's second season, winning an Air New Zealand Screen Award for his work that year. He was later given the honour of directing Fortune's final episode, the highest rating of the entire six seasons. Bennett's directing work on the show has twice been nominated for a Qantas Film and Television Award.

Bennett left his role as SPP head of drama in mid 2009, to return to freelance producing and directing. He took on both roles with 2010 tele-movie Spies and Lies. The based-on-a-true-story tale featured Anthony Starr as World War II conman Syd Ross. "Simon is a really collaborative director," Starr told Onfilm."He gave us a lot of rope to really experiment with character and try different things."

Bennett recently produced the first season of SPP comedy drama The Almighty Johnsons, the tale of four Kiwi brothers with God-like powers. His next project will mark Bennett's big screen debut: directing a sequel to Sione's Wedding.