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.
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.
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.
Anthony McCarten
Raised in Taranaki with seven siblings and roughly as many books, Anthony McCarten went on to co-write global stage hit Ladies Night. In 1998 he made his directorial debut with a movie of his play Via Satellite, followed later by Show of Hands. In 2015 he won two BAFTA awards after writing Stephen Hawking biopic The Theory of Everything. Winston Churchill drama Darkest Hour and Bohemian Rhapsody followed.
Graeme Cowley
Cinematographer Graeme Cowley created the moody imagery for classic movies Utu and Smash Palace. Elsewhere he played another vital role in the Kiwi film renaissance, by establishing camera equipment hire company Film Facilities, alongside the late Nigel Hutchinson. Cowley went on to produce black comedy Carry Me Back, and work on the restoration of Utu.
Phil Wallington
Veteran Australian-born producer Phil Wallington has 50 plus years of screen credits. A 1989 shift to New Zealand following 23 years at Australia’s ABC news saw him take on a run of executive producer roles on current affairs shows; he helped produce the controversial 1990 Frontline report on Labour Party campaign funding. The Top Shelf producer is also a regular media commentator.
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 theatre scene in the 1990s. 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 playing a vampire groupie on What We Do in the Shadows.
Bryan Bruce
Since the late 1980s Bryan Bruce has been a prolific documentary maker and presenter. Over more than 30 documentaries, plus three seasons of The Investigator, he has cast fresh eyes on some of the most famous crimes in New Zealand’s history, and asked tough questions about the country’s economic and social trajectory.
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.