Whai Ngata
Whai Ngata worked in Māori broadcasting at Television New Zealand for 25 years, a period when the quantity of Māori broadcasting underwent a major expansion. Starting as a reporter, he rose to become TVNZ's general manager of Māori Programming, a post he held from 1994 until retiring in 2008. Ngata was named an Officer of the Order of New Zealand Merit in 2007. He passed away on 3 April 2016.
Julienne Stretton
Julienne Stretton spent three decades documenting NZ people and culture for TV, as a researcher, producer and director. Her subjects have ranged from Katherine Mansfield and Hollywood actor Nola Luxford, to a young disabled couple in the groundbreaking Miles and Shelly documentaries. She researched major documentaries on Moriori and Gallipoli, and shared a 1992 Qantas Award for 60 Minutes.
Dale Bradley
The prolific Dale Bradley has produced and directed feature films on both sides of the Tasman. After setting up company Daybreak Pictures with his brother Grant, and directing his first feature, Gallipoli tale Chunuk Bair, Dale Bradley developed and directed movies in New Zealand and then Australia. In 2013 the Bradleys established NZ/UK-based company Aristos Films.
Clive Sowry
Should Clive Sowry ever choose to enter Mastermind, his knowledge of the National Film Unit will give his competitors a definite run for their money. Sowry worked at the government filmmaking organisation for 14 years, including nine as the NFU's archivist. He went on to undertake a programme that saved 100s of local films, and has written often about filmmaking in New Zealand — including for NZ On Screen.
Stephen Stehlin
Stephen Stehlin has been involved with flagship Pacific show Tagata Pasifika for over 30 years. Alongside Ngaire Fuata and John Utanga, he launched SunPix in 2015. The company took over Tagata Pasifika after Television New Zealand outsourced its stable of Māori and Pacific programmes. Of Samoan descent, Stehlin has been honoured as both a Samoan matai chief, and as a Member of the NZ Order of Merit.
Steven O'Meagher
Producer Steven O'Meagher is the founder of Auckland production company Desert Road, whose work includes acclaimed TV police drama Harry and Emmy-nominated docudrama The Golden Hour. O'Meagher developed Bill O'Brien's Aramoana massacre account 22 Hours of Terror into acclaimed feature Out of the Blue. The film went on to box office success and multiple Qantas awards.
Peter Blake
Peter Blake introduced more local content to popular music shows Ready to Roll and Radio with Pictures at a time when covers of overseas songs were the norm. The longtime musician began in television via 1970s music programme; Grunt Machine, and ended up in charge of a stable of shows. He has also composed music for everything from TV One's nightly News theme to drama Shark in the Park.
Swami Hansa
Swami Hansa (sometimes credited as Anand Hansa or Malcolm Nish) was operating a camera in 1962, the day TV began broadcasting in Dunedin. Hansa has been shooting ever since, his work ranging across natural history, human interest and the arts. His CV includes many episodes of the long-running Heartland, plus such noted docos as Birth, Kiwi - A Natural History and Horizon doco The Man Who Moved Mountains, made for the BBC.
Graham Kerr
English-born Graham Kerr was New Zealand’s first celebrity chef. Initially RNZAF Chief Catering Adviser, he soon found himself on television in a flamboyant persona that would come to be known as the Galloping Gourmet. He has gone on to make more than 1,800 programmes around the world – but, in later years, conversion to Christianity and family ill health have considerably toned down his performance and recipes.
Ian Johnstone
The voice and face of Ian Johnstone are a familiar part of the New Zealand television landscape. Since the early 60s, his work as a reporter, presenter and producer has allowed him to document many key events from the first four decades of local television.