TV3 Turns 25
November 2014 marks 25 years since New Zealand TV’s third channel began broadcasting. This 25th birthday sampler pack looks back at iconic drama (Outrageous Fortune), upstart news shows (Nightline), fresh youth programming (Ice TV, Being Eve) and comedy high watermarks (bro’Town, Jaquie Brown, 7 Days). As the launch slogan said "come home to the feeling!"
Caterina De Nave
This Spotlight collection showcases the work of Influential producer and network executive Caterina De Nave, who was the founding producer for Shortland St, and one of the main forces in the show’s development. As Commissioning Editor at TV3, she brought drama and comedy to a new level of commerc...
Beauty Queens
This Spotlight collection offers high stakes drama, beautiful women in beautiful gowns, and the occasional shocking reminder that yesterday's fashions can be tomorrow's fashion crimes. Contestants for the title of Miss New Zealand chart the changing face of beauty contests over 50 years, from the...
The Springbok Tour - 35 Years On
Tuesday 19 July marks the 35th anniversary of the Springboks' arrival in New Zealand for the 1981 rugby tour. Collected below are classic documentaries on the tour and subsequent mass protests (Patu!, Try Revolution), anti-tour protest songs, and a doco on the All Blacks’ first post-apartheid tou...
25 Years of Shortland Street
After countless romances, breakups and revelations — plus the odd psycho and crashing helicopter — Shortland Street turned 25 in May 2017. Made on the run, sold round the globe, the Kiwi soap opera juggernaut has provided a launchpad for dozens of actors and behind the scenes talents. Alongside best of clips, the very first episode, musical moments and favourite memories from the cast, Shortland star turned director Angela Bloomfield writes about how the show has changed here, while Mihi Murray backgrounds how it began — and how it reflects New Zealand.
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.
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.
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.
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.