Melissa Lee
National MP Melissa Lee first made her name presenting award-winning television series Asia Downunder. Lee started on the show in 1994 and worked on 600 episodes, a number of them as producer. She became New Zealand's first Korean MP in 2008, and was later named Parliamentary Private Secretary for Ethnic Communities.
Kim Webby
Kim Webby first began directing while working as a TVNZ reporter. Alongside stints on Fair Go and 60 Minutes, she has directed a range of documentaries for both TVNZ and Māori Television. October 15, her film on the 2007 police raids, was nominated for an Aotearoa Television Award; in 2015 she helmed feature-length companion piece The Price of Peace, which screened at the 2015 NZ Film Festival.
Keith Hawke
Keith Hawke was behind the camera on landmark TV series Tangata Whenua, and many other productions besides. In the 80s he reinvented himself in Asia as a director/producer of television and corporate videos, working in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia.
Jack Body
Jack Body, OMNZ, composed for everything from gamelan orchestras to the Kronos Quartet, and was a leading figure in awakening local interest in Asian and Pacific music. His soundtrack work ranged across children’s tales, te reo dramas and nature films. His collaborations with director Vincent Ward include classic film Vigil, and (with John Gibson), 2008’s Rain of the Children. Body passed away on 10 May 2015.
John Blick
After starting his filmmaking career at the National Film Unit, cinematographer John Blick has shot many iconic Kiwi commercials, done extended time in Asia and the United States — and worked alongside everyone from Brian Brake and Peter Jackson (The Frighteners), to Skippy the Bush Kangaroo.
Richard Thomas
Richard Thomas has a passion for documentary. After directing for the BBC's legendary doco series Man Alive, he moved downunder and became head of Television One’s information programme department. Following a short spell as Director of Television at the ABC in Australia, he settled in New Zealand to make some compelling television documentaries — and inspire others to do the same.
Dean Cornish
Globetrotting director Dean Cornish's credit reel ranges from Intrepid Journeys to bold buildings, Extreme Tribes to Rachel Hunter, sex trafficking to This Town. Trained at Christchurch's NZ Broadcasting School, Cornish has produced films in more than 90 countries and crafted a reputation as a go-to guy for travel stories. He shared a Best Director gong at the 2011 Aotearoa Film and TV Awards for Making Tracks.
Brian Walden
Some jobs never make the headlines; in the screen industry, one of those unsung positions is the production manager. After seven years on film sets in Asia, Brian Walden returned home in the mid 70s to production manage the shoots of many classic TV dramas, from Hunter’s Gold to Hanlon. In 1985 he went freelance, keeping a firm hand on shoots involving horses, hospital porters, vampires and underwater aeroplanes.
Prince Tui Teka
Larger than life and the ultimate showband performer, Prince Tui Teka's resume included years on the international circuit with the Maori Troubadours and the Maori Volcanics. A successful solo career and love songs like ‘E Ipo’, alongside roles in films like Savage Islands and Came a Hot Friday have ensured his name is listed in New Zealand entertainment history.
Gavin Wood
After working his way up through the ranks of TVNZ in the 80s, producer Gavin Wood travelled the world to work on reality game shows across 10 countries. Alongside work on the local versions of popular game shows such as Wheel of Fortune, he produced live coverage of the 2011 Rugby World Cup opening ceremony on the Auckland waterfront — which went live to 1.5 billion people worldwide.