Gordon Bick
English-born journalist Gordon Bick arrived in New Zealand in 1964. Within two years he was producing current affairs show Compass. His Kiwi career came to an abrupt halt when he resigned in protest over claimed government interference in a special about decimal currency. Bick put his side of the story in book The Compass Affair, and crossed the Tasman to produce current affairs for the ABC and Channel Nine.
Garth Maxwell
Long conscious that New Zealand is made up of many minorities, “all with something to say”, Garth Maxwell has brought his distinctive sensibility to gay love story Beyond Gravity, two features (the dark and offbeat Jack Be Nimble, and relationship drama When Love Comes), and chalk and cheese TV series Rude Awakenings.
Danny Mulheron
Danny Mulheron has approached comedy from almost every angle: as a writer, director, inside a hippo suit, and as co-creator of the politically-incorrect Seven Periods with Mr Gormsby. But laughter is only half the story. Mulheron has also acted in a run of productions, presented car series AA Torque Show, and directed everything from documentaries (The Third Richard) to several TV dramas about iconic Kiwis.
Jed Brophy
Alongside a notable theatre resumé, actor Jed Brophy’s wide-ranging screen career has seen him wrangling horses and scaring hobbits for Peter Jackson, undergoing relationship trauma for Gaylene Preston, and playing South African in District 9.
Ian Cross
Ian Cross trained as a journalist. His 1957 novel The God Boy has been hailed as a classic (and similar status afforded to the 1976 TV adaptation). As Listener editor he doubled its circulation; as broadcasting chair and chief executive he had a turbulent relationship with the Muldoon government — and failed to stem what he saw as the over-commercialisation of television.
Simon Riera
Simon Riera (pronounced Re-air-ah) fell in love with filmmaking while studying geology at Otago University. Since then his work as a cinematographer has included five features — spanning everything from Hopeless to Housebound — award-winning work on TV thriller The Cult, and an array of noteworthy short films.
Victoria Spackman
In May 2017 Victoria Spackman began as leader of creative campus Te Auaha, which is set to open in Wellington in 2018. Before that she was chief executive and co-owner of Wellington company Gibson Group, whose multi-media and interactive installations and TV programmes reach a large international audience. Studies in law, film, theatre and linguistics have all fed into Spackman's work.
Jackie van Beek
The multi-talented Jackie van Beek emerged from Wellington’s 90s theatre scene. After directing a run of award-winning shorts, her first feature The Inland Road was invited to the 2017 Berlin Film Festival. She went on to co-direct, co-write and co-star in comedy The Breaker Upperers, with Madeleine Sami. As an actor, van Beek is probably best known for her role in What We Do in the Shadows, as a vampire groupie.
Amanda Evans
The trio of documentaries surrounding the religious community of Gloriavale generated huge TV ratings. Amanda Evans is the director and producer behind this mini-TV phenomenon. In her 30 year career she has produced and/ or directed documentaries, reality series and iconic Kiwi kids and arts shows.
Michelanne Forster
Michelanne Forster is a playwright, scriptwriter and author, who moved from her native California to New Zealand in the 1970s. After training as a teacher, she began her career as a writer, producer and director of children’s programmes with TVNZ. She played a large part in making the long-running Play School more relevant to a Kiwi audience, and later worked on children's shows Spot On, What Now and After School.