Anzac Day Dawn Service
Paul Henry and Pippa Wetzell introduce a live broadcast of the Anzac Day dawn service at Waikumete Cemetery in Auckland. This is New Zealand's largest war cemetery and a service is held here each year. This service commemorates all service personnel who have served overseas for New Zealand. Waitakere Mayor Bob Harvey speaks, Returned Services Association members, politicians and the public lay tributes. Miriama Kamo provides a commentary. The programme excerpted here marked the beginning of TV ONE's Anzac Day coverage, which ran all day.
I'm Not Harry Jenson
In this dark whodunit Gareth Reeves (The Cult, A Song of Good) stars as a crime writer who goes bush with strangers, while on a break from researching a story on a serial killer. Soon there’s death in the muddy Waitakere backblocks. The film marked the big screen debut of filmmaking partners James Napier Robertson and Tom Hern, en route to their high profile drama The Dark Horse. The results won support from a strong ensemble cast (Ian Mune, Ilona Rodgers), an invitation to the NZ film festival, and praise from NZ Herald reviewer Peter Calder for "smart writing and good acting".
White Trash
The video that helped Steriogram get discovered by Capitol Records is a nod to all things bogan, and is accessorised in line with this song title. From mullets to car mechanics, fluffy dice to line dancing, this homage to everything West Auckland, includes a cameo from then Cultural Ambassador for Waitakere Ewen Gilmour, and white trash rhyming to boot: “I got my Holden and I’m ready for Rolling / Yeah this car ain’t stolen ...”
Velvet Dreams
A homage to Dusky Maiden images as well as a playful take on the low art of velvet painting, Sima Urale’s Velvet Dreams provides a tongue-in-cheek exploration of Pacific Island stereotypes. Part detective story, part documentary, an unseen narrator goes in search of a painting of a Polynesian princess that he has fallen in love with. Along the way he meets artists, fans and critics of the kitsch art genre, as well as the mysterious Gauguin-like figure of Charlie McPhee. Made for TVNZ's Work of Art series, Velvet Dreams played in multiple international film festivals.
Ewen Gilmour
Surely the most famous comedian to rise from West Auckland, Ewen Gilmour won the first Billy T award in 1997, and a devoted following. The longtime petrolhead had begun making regular appearances on TV show Pulp Comedy in the mid 90s; there would also be live performances in Paris, Ireland, Montreal, and across the length of New Zealand. Gilmour passed away in his sleep in early October 2014.
Roy Good
Roy Good is the creative talent behind a wide range of set designs (1960s music show C'mon, Hudson & Halls, Top Half) and graphics (including iconic logos for South Pacific Television, and Television New Zealand's Southern Cross logo). Good started his television career painting sets and designing graphics for C'mon. The accomplished artist led a large design team at TVNZ for most of the 1980s.
Bradford Haami
Co-creator of anthology series Mataku, Bradford Haami is a producer, director and scriptwriter as well as an author, lecturer and Māori historian. His passion for storytelling and expertise in Māori culture has seen him work on television productions and act as a consultant to numerous local and international drama, documentary and features over the past two decades.
Tom Reilly
Tom Reilly was named new filmmaker of the year thanks to a showreel that included his short film Man with Issues. Reilly's shorts and commercials have often mixed traditional stop motion animation with digital effects. In 2010 he scored festival acclaim with feature Gordonia, chronicling battles between an eccentric car yard owner and Waitakere City Council, then directed a trio of doco series for Wellington’s Gibson Group.
Simon Prast
Actor/director Simon Prast is best-known for his stage career, and 11 years commanding the Auckland Theatre Company. Prast's screen-acting career dates back to the mid 80s, most famously for his role as rich kid Alister Redfern in beloved soap Gloss. His biggest feature role to date remains Stephen, man-at-the-crossroads in 1998 feature When Love Comes.
Chris Dudman
Kiwi Chris Dudman studied film at Ilam and London’s Royal College of Art; his graduation short was nominated for a student Oscar. After working on arts documentaries in the UK, Dudman returned to NZ in 1995. Since then he has directed drama shows (the high-rating Harry), documentaries (The Day that Changed My Life), attention-grabbing shorts (Choice Night), and a number of high profile ads for his company Robber’s Dog.