Mike Smith: On directing drama and passing on Russell Crowe...
Versatile director Mike Smith has made an enormous amount of New Zealand drama. Highlights of his lengthy television CV include Radio Waves, Duggan, Serial Killers, The Almighty Johnsons, Nothing Trivial, tele-movie Siege and docu-drama Nancy Wake: The White Mouse. Smith also had a big hand in creating Heroes (80s pop band on-the-make show), yokels comedy Willy Nilly, children’s drama The Lost Children and 2013 comedy Sunny Skies. He was also one of the key players in the launch of Outrageous Fortune.
Rachel Jean: Documentaries, dramas and being a network exec...
Rachel Jean has produced and/or directed over 40 documentaries, made award-winning drama and film, and set up and run production company Isola Productions. Jean moved from producing and directing to the role of Head of Drama and Comedy at TV3, and now works at South Pacific Pictures.
Brian Walden: Making TV drama work behind the scenes...
Production manager Brian Walden proved a near unstoppable force during the mid 70s dawn of Kiwi TV drama. Known as 'the Sarge' to those who worked with him, Walden was on location to bring in a slew of classic dramas, on time and budget: among them were Hunter’s Gold, The Mackenzie Affair, Gather Your Dreams, Mortimer's Patch and legal classic Hanlon. In the mid 80s he left TVNZ to go freelance, and helped produce everything from vampire movie Moonrise to TV's The New Adventures of Black Beauty.
Chris Bailey: Producing TV drama classics...
With more than 30 years in the television industry under his belt, veteran drama producer and director Chris Bailey has made a significant contribution to New Zealand’s screen heritage. His many TV credits include Gloss, Mortimer’s Patch, Under the Mountain, Burying Brian, Marlin Bay, City Life, and Greenstone. He was also the first executive producer on Shortland Street. Bailey was a co-founder of production company ScreenWorks which made the popular legal drama Street Legal.
Simon Bennett: On producing and directing the big TV dramas…
Simon Bennett's extensive CV includes producing and directing episodes of long-running successes Shortland Street and Outrageous Fortune. He has also spent time in executive roles at South Pacific Pictures, the production house behind these shows, and directed SPP feature film Sione's 2: Unfinished Business.
Shortland Street: An NZ TV drama legend...
Produced by South Pacific Pictures for TV2, serial drama Shortland St has screened five nights a week since its inception in 1992. It has won awards, sold internationally and become a part of our national landscape and pop culture. A who's who of New Zealand acting talent, writers, directors and producers have worked on the soap.
John A Givins: Early drama days, Queer Nation, and more...
John A Givins (Johnny) is an actor, director and producer. His independent production company Livingstone Productions is best known for the long-running TV2 LGBT series Queer Nation, and the award-winning TV ONE documentary series Captain's Log.
Cohen Holloway: On blending comedy and drama...
Cohen Holloway is a singer, actor and comedian who first made an impact on comedy shows Pulp Comedy and Facelift. Holloway went on to act in movies After the Waterfall, and Taika Waititi hits Boy and Hunt for the Wilderpeople. In 2009 he won a Qantas Best Actor Award after starring as David Dougherty in TV drama Until Proven Innocent. In 2015 he starred in Māori Television’s acclaimed comedy series Find Me a Māori Bride.
Bryan Shaw: Editing images of cars, gladiators and upturned catamarans...
Bryan Shaw is a multi award-winning editor who has worked on a wide range of documentaries and dramas. Among the documentaries are Sense of Place: Robin Morrison, Photographer; Back from the Dead – The Saga of the Rose Noelle; and series An Immigrant Nation. Shaw moved into editing dramas with Street Legal, then went on to edit a number of other drama series including Outrageous Fortune, Westside, The Almighty Johnsons, and Spartacus.
Rachel Lang: Creating favourite TV characters...
Rachel Lang has been one of the driving forces behind some of New Zealand’s most popular television dramas. Beginning as a story editor on 1980s dramas Shark in the Park and Open House, she moved on to Shortland Street as a story-liner and then as the show’s Executive Producer for a number of years. Lang collaborated with writer Gavin Strawhan to create the South Pacific Pictures dramas Jackson’s Wharf and Mercy Peak. Later she developed the enormously successful Outrageous Fortune, as well as Maddigan’s Quest and Go Girls.