Don Selwyn
Don Selwyn, ONZM, was an actor, casting director and mentor to a host of talented Māori who went on to work in film and television. Selwyn’s long acting resume includes 1970s historical epic The Governor and police show Mortimer’s Patch. He also directed The Māori Merchant of Venice, the first feature film in te reo Māori.
Lisa Harrow
Lisa Harrow's CV marks her out as one of New Zealand's most prodigious acting exports. After starring in Twelfth Night for the Royal Shakespeare Company at age 25, she got serious about screen acting in the 1980s and worked everywhere from Iceland to Australia, as well as starring in Kiwi films Other Halves and Shaker Run. Alongside her acting, Harrow now campaigns for ecological responsibility on stage and page.
Jonathan Hardy
Wellington-born Jonathan Hardy, who died in July 2012, was an actor for more than four decades. Along the way he was on stage in New Zealand, Australia and England, and on screen in Kiwi classic The Scarecrow and a run of Australian projects. Hardy also co-wrote Constance and Aussie classic Breaker Morant, in the process becoming the first New Zealander to be nominated for a scriptwriting Academy Award.
Alexander Behse
German-raised Alexander Behse has produced a run of documentaries exploring Māori subjects, from ta moko to te reo Shakespeare, to acclaimed Tūhoe HQ story Ever the Land. Behse got an MA in production from UTS Sydney, and has many TV credits as an editor. He made his directing debut with 2012 TV documentary Nazi Hunter, and was at the helm of award-winning TV series Radar Across the Pacific.
Anthony Stones
Anthony Stones worked in design for NZ television for over 20 years, with credits ranging from drama to current affairs. After five years as TV2's head of design, he returned to his English birthplace in 1983. Outside of television, Stones made well-known public sculptures in Aotearoa, the UK and China; he died in China in September 2016, aged 82. Image credit: Photo taken and supplied by Dave Roberts
Marcus Craig (Diamond Lil)
In the late 1970s actor and singer Marcus Craig ( aka Diamond Lil) popularised the glittering world of drag for mainstream New Zealand. His hit cabaret act featured talents like Billy T James and Tina Cross; his duet with Fred Dagg made the pop charts. His television credits include satirical series Something to Look Forward to, various guest slots and the role of co-host on variety show Top of the World.
Bill Sheat
Bill Sheat has applied his legal and organisational skills across the arts in Aotearoa, to influential effect. He was pivotal in the setting up the NZ Film Commission, and was its inaugural chair from 1978 to 1985. Sheat also spent time as chair of the Queen Elizabeth ll Arts Council, helped fund John O’Shea's 1960s musical Don't Let it Get You, and played a role in ushering Geoff Murphy’s Goodbye Pork Pie to the screen.
Mia Blake
After training in dance, and taking on Shakespeare roles at Victoria University, Mia Blake debuted on screen in ensemble comedy Hopeless (2000). In 2006 she won an NZ Screen Award as a hardworking young mother in Toa Fraser's No. 2. Samoan-themed horror The Tattooist followed; as did another nomination, after she starred in acclaimed short This is Her. Blake has also performed for Auckland’s Silo Theatre.
Barbara Ewing
New Zealand-born actor Barbara Ewing attracted early notice in 60s British horror films, and became a UK household name as buxom Agnes Fairchild on TV comedy Brass. Ewing was raised in NZ, before leaving to train at RADA in London. In 1979 she won a Feltex Award as the lead in NZ returning expat drama Rachel. Ewing has written plays and several acclaimed novels, including theatre-set bestseller The Mesmerist.
Terence Bayler
After starring in feature Broken Barrier — the only New Zealand feature made in the 1950s — Terence Bayler departed for England, to continue a six-decade long acting career that encompassed Monty Python, William Shakespeare and Harry Potter. Born in Wanganui on 24 January 1930, Bayler passed away in England on 2 August 2016.