Roseanne Liang
Chinese-Kiwi Roseanne Liang first made a splash with 2005 documentary Banana in a Nutshell, based on her own romance with a European Kiwi. Later she turned her experiences into acclaimed big screen rom-com My Wedding and Other Secrets. After making five seasons of web series Flat3/Friday Night Bites, Liang was confirmed to direct a feature-length version of her high profile action short, Do No Harm.
Peter Cox
When Peter Cox dreamed up The Insiders Guide to Happiness for his Master's scriptwriting thesis, he never thought it would be made into a TV series. But he was proved wrong when it became an award-winning drama, even spawning a prequel. Cox found further screen success by co-creating TV thriller The Cult and comedy The Pretender, as well as writing for series This Is Not My Life.
Gavin Strawhan
Award-winning scribe Gavin Strawhan is one of the most experienced screenwriters working in New Zealand television. His extended resume includes writing for, and helping create TV shows Nothing Trivial, Filthy Rich, Jackson's Wharf, Mercy Peak, Burying Brian, kidult hit Being Eve, Kaitangata Twitch and futuristic thriller This is Not My Life. He also co-wrote 2010 feature film Matariki.
Rachel Lang
Writer Rachel Lang, MNZM, has played a major hand in a host of New Zealand television dramas, including Outrageous Fortune, the iconic saga of a West Auckland family trying to go straight. Her CV also includes the long-running Go Girls, small town dramas Jackson's Wharf and Mercy Peak, plus Westside, The Almighty Johnsons, This is Not My Life, Filthy Rich and The Blue Rose.
Paul Sutorius
Paul Sutorius is an editor who is as comfortable cutting together scenes for drama, children's adventure, a horror movie or a documentary. Sutorius has worked extensively with director Gaylene Preston, and won awards for his editing on Preston's second feature Ruby and Rata and her Te Papa making-of-museum doco, Getting to Our Place.
Cushla Dillon
Self-taught editor Cushla Dillon moved from shorter works to features with Harry Sinclair's Topless Women Talk about their Lives: both the bite-sized TV series then the movie, for which she won her first NZ film award. Dillon has gone on to edit shorts, documentaries, and many more features — including The Price of Milk, Orphans & Kingdoms, and award-winning documentary This Way of Life.
Ainsley Gardiner
Ainsley Gardiner, MNZM, has been a producer on a run of successful short films and hit movies. She worked with Taika Waititi and Cliff Curtis on Oscar-nominated short Tama Tu, and features Eagle vs Shark and Boy. Then Gardiner launched Miss Conception Films with fellow producer Georgina Conder. Their work includes hit comedy The Breaker Uppers and documentary She Shears.
Nathaniel Lees
Kiwi-born Samoan Nathaniel Lees began acting on stage in 1975, and on screen in 1984. Since then he has become a leading force in the development of Pacific Island theatre in Aotearoa, and brought his distinctive baritone voice to everything from The Billy T James Show to The Matrix.
David Brechin-Smith
David Brechin-Smith is an award-winning screenwriter. Nominated for Lovebites and The Strip, he won awards for The Insider's Guide to Happiness and prequel The Insiders Guide to Love. He created and wrote drama series The Hothouse and worked on thriller series The Cult. Teen comedy-drama series Paradise Café and movie The Hopes and Dreams of Gazza Snell are also among his credits.
Harry Sinclair
Harry Sinclair first won fame as a member of beloved 80s multimedia duo The Front Lawn; whose shorts included Walkshort, Linda's Body and The Lounge Bar. Starting with Topless Women Talk about Their Lives, the first of three features exploring 'modern love', Sinclair displayed his talent for offbeat humour and improvisation, and his belief in the creative importance of the actor.