Michael O'Connor
A cameraman with over 50 years experience, Michael O’Connor joined the NZ Broadcasting Corporation as a trainee straight from high school. O'Connor went on to shoot some of New Zealand's most iconic dramas, from Under the Mountain to 1980s cop show Mortimer's Patch. His documentary work includes popular series Heartland and Epitaph, and directing Dalvanius, about singer Dalvanius Prime.
Jools Topp
Jools Topp is half of performing duo The Topp Twins. The sisters have taken their songs and comic characters to stages across the world, plus successful television shows The Topp Twins and Topp Country. The duo's story was told in 2009's Untouchable Girls, the most successful local documentary released in New Zealand cinemas to date.
James Wallace
James Wallace, KNZM, is a patron of cinema, among other types of art. His CV as a producer of short films includes Accidents and Cannes success Planet Man. Wallace produced pioneering AIDS drama A Death in the Family and acclaimed feature Desperate Remedies. He was the Company Secretary and Solicitor for cinema chain Kerridge Odeon, and has spent time on the board of the NZ Film Commission.
Joe Cote
Canadian Joe Cote was travelling the world on his OE when love led him to New Zealand in 1965. He landed a job at the NZ Broadcasting Corporation soon after; initially he wasn't allowed on air because of his accent. In 1970 Cote moved into TV, presenting current affairs show The South Tonight. He also worked on Gallery and Inquiry. Cote became the inaugural presenter for National Radio's Morning Report in 1975.
Mike McRoberts
TV3 news anchor Mike McRoberts spent a decade as a radio reporter, then made his name as a sports journalist with TVNZ in the mid 90s. After six years with the state broadcaster, including occasional shifts reading the primetime news, he moved to TV3. From 2005, he joined Hilary Barry leading the 6pm news bulletin. Since then he has presented reports and bulletins from Christchurch, Iraq, Haiti and the Philippines.
Fred Barnes
Fred Barnes founded Country Calendar in 1966. The show would become one of the longest running on the planet; and as presenter, Barnes became one of New Zealand's most widely-known TV personalities. After commanding rural broadcasting for state television and radio, Barnes trained journalists in Malaysia and headed Radio New Zealand's overseas programming division. He died 13 March 1993, at 72.
Murray Reece
Murray Reece has been the director at a number of key turning points in New Zealand's television history: from the debut of our first drama series (Pukemanu), to the first telemovie (The God Boy), to the episode of Country Calendar where Fred Dagg first showed us around the farm.
Toa Fraser
Playwright turned director Toa Fraser grabbed the theatre world with award-winning play No.2, which he then directed for the screen. At the 2006 Sundance Festival it won the coveted audience award. Follow-up Dean Spanley won seven gongs at the 2009 Qantas Film Awards, including best director. Fraser went on to helm ballet documentary Giselle, te reo action movie The Dead Lands, and hostage drama 6 Days.
Andrew Bancroft
Two of Andrew Bancroft’s early short films won awards — science fiction tale Planet Man was the first New Zealand short to win the Critic's Week section at the Cannes Film Festival. Aside from his own shorts and a run of arts documentaries for television, Bancroft has also helped develop a successful slate of short films for other directors.
Jeffrey Thomas
Jeffrey Thomas was born in Wales and graduated with a Master of Literature from Oxford University. Since arriving in Wellington in 1976, his televison credits have ranged from Close To Home and Gloss, to Mercy Peak and cop dramas Shark in the Park and The Gulf. In the 1980s he starred in a Welsh language drama series Bowen. An award-winning playwright, he has also acted on the big screen and the stage.