ShowNews

Queer Producers Incubator
2024-05-10 - 2024-05-11
The Queer Producers Incubator is a two-day intensive workshop taking place on Fri 10th and Sat 11th May in Tāmaki Makaurau. The workshop will support and upskill 5 emerging queer identifying producers who have at least one project in development.
Sessions from guest speakers will be tailored to the group and include the following topics:
– Supporting a team through story development
– Upskilling in pitching, funding and financing
– Creating safe spaces in development, production, and marketing.
After the workshop, the 5 participants will receive mentoring in the form of 2 x 1 hour Zoom sessions with a producer mentor, to be completed by the end of June 2024.
The aim is to upskill queer producers, offering tailored support and a network of peers as they progress further in their careers.

Scene Group, Wellington, application deadline
2024-05-10
A month long season of weekly scene groups is coming to you!
Collaboratively run, democratic, no leader, participatory – just practice and encouragement. You will prepare and perform a scene for your peers and support each other to have fun and take risks. Positive, encouraging feedback only. A chance to improve your acting “fitness” or try out characters you think you’d never get cast for.
4 Tuesday evenings in a row, 21 May – 11 June. Ideally you can commit to all of them.

Scene Group, Christchurch, application deadline
2024-05-10
A month long season of weekly scene groups is coming to you!
Collaboratively run, democratic, no leader, participatory – just practice and encouragement. You will prepare and perform a scene for your peers and support each other to have fun and take risks. Positive, encouraging feedback only. A chance to improve your acting “fitness” or try out characters you think you’d never get cast for.
4 Sunday evenings in a row, 26 May – 16 June. Ideally you can commit to all of them.

My Grubby Halo, campaign closes
2024-05-10
The Pink Floyd Experience are a Kiwi band who have been wowing crowds for 28 years. They are hard-working men and women with day jobs.
They have toured widely in New Zealand and Australia and have a following on social media approaching 45,000 true believers internationally. Their gigs are sold-old, visually and audio-wise brilliant – reproducing image-for-image and note- for-note the true sound of the original Pink Floyd. The band have covered every Pink Floyd album, including “The Wall” and last year’s spectacular 50th Anniversary “Dark Side of the Moon” tour.
This year they will reproduce one of Pink Floyd’s most iconic concert experiences – the awesome “Pulse” show, first staged at Earls Court in London thirty years ago. There’ll be “Pulse” and much more, at venues throughout Aotearoa.
Two very experienced film-makers and journalists, Rob Harley and Alan Seay, want to work with the Pink Floyd Experience to make a highly memorable 60-75 minute, high quality documentary on the 2024 tour.

How We Got There: Kiel McNaughton and Kerry Warkia
2024-05-09 18:00 - 20:00 (Pacific/Auckland)
Join us in the second instalment of How We Got There: From Idea to Impact, where attendees come face to face with two vanguard storytellers whose cultural identities fuel their mahi.
This event brings you face-to-face with Kiel McNaughton and Kerry Warkia, a storytelling duo whose cultural identities fuel their creative work. Starting as actors, they’ve built Brown Sugar Apple Grunt Productions into a force in the New Zealand screen industry. Their passion for diversity and showcasing unique stories has led to a successful portfolio of web series, features, and television series.

Doc Edge Festival 2024 - Programme Launch
2024-05-09
By invitation, Christchurch

Moana Pasifika Producers Development Initiative - Q&A
2024-05-08 18:30 - 19:30
The Moana Pasifika Producers Development Initiative is an initiative funded by the New Zealand Film Commission that aims to provide emerging Moana Pasifika screen producers with the skills, knowledge, and networks to develop and produce compelling content for New Zealand’s screen industry. Our vision is to implement impactful change to New Zealand’s screen sector by increasing and developing the number of competent Pacific Islands creative practitioners. Through a series of consecutive fono, coupled with a 4-month mentorship, participants will cover the producer-specific knowledge to upskill and springboard their careers, enabling them to better understand, safely navigate and feel confident to contribute to New Zealand’s screen sector.
Interested in applying to our Moana Pasifika Producers Development Initiative? Unsure about something? Still have more questions? Join our online Q&A about the programme, the application process and requirements.
Save your spot by registering today!

Paint It Black, campaign closes
2024-05-08
Fundraising campaign for David Harrison’s short drama.
After an actress’s career is ruined for rejecting another actor’s sexual advances, her family devises an elaborate plot to enact revenge by dismantling his reputation.
Who are we?
Dead Slate Studios is a production company made up of film school graduates. Our members specialize in Producing, Directing, Acting, Camera, Lighting, Audio, Post Production, and Art Design.
We are a group of collaborators who thrive off each other’s creativity. Paint it Black was originally a film school final project, but now that we have graduated, we are embarking on reshooting the film to elevate its overall quality for submission to Film Festivals.

Low-Budget Feature Filmmaking, Auckland
2024-05-04 13:00 - 16:00
Michael Duignan (The Paragon), Tom Levesque (Shut Eye), and Tom Sainsbury (Loop Track) will join Mia Maramara to discuss the end-to-end production processes of their respective feature films and how they kept to their shoestring budgets of under $500K without scarifying craft and quality.

Pitchfest 2024
2024-05-03 - 2024-05-04
Pitchfest is hosted by Wellington’s Floating Rock Studio.
In 2022, they received an investment by Hillfarrance and are using that money to invest in YOU, the creator, of your upcoming animated film or TV series.
We’re here to support you and your vision with $100,000 to build a pitch, then present to buyers!

Indian Short Film Night, Christchurch
2024-05-02 19:00 - 20:30
India has the largest screen industry in the world, by output, producing double the number of films made in Hollywood each year. Nourished of course by a flourishing short film scene. In this collection Show Me Shorts has collaborated with the International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala to curate six shorts from top Indian filmmakers.
The stories span different regions, languages and flavours, but are united in their exploration of the connections between friends, family and the natural world around us – all with English subtitles
Rating: TBC

7pm, Thursday 2 May, Alice Cinemas

BOOK TICKETS – CHRISTCHURCH

Two Productions Talk Sustainability
2024-05-02 10:00 - 11:30
We’d like to invite you to join the sustainability teams from two significant Auckland-based film productions for a discussion about sustainable practices on different screen productions, including waste and emissions reduction measures the productions undertook, and our experience calculating emissions footprints.
This is a wonderful opportunity to ask questions and learn from the people on the ground. Please share this invitation around and show support. We hope to see many of you there.
Last November the new points test for the 5% rebate uplift came into effect. In its shortest form, all productions wishing to access the Uplift are now required to:

Have a sustainability officer.
Produce a sustainability action plan ahead of production.
Produce a report on sustainability and their carbon emissions.

You can read more about these requirements here: Accessing the 5% Uplift

Screen Producers Australia - Screen Business Essentials: Online
2024-05-02 09:00 - 2024-05-03 17:00 | online
This two-day online intensive, presented in conjunction with the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS), covers the essentials of setting up and running a screen business. The workshop covers the commercial framework in which producers must operate, including issues commonly encountered when building a creative business from the ground up.
The Screen Business Essentials program is vital for start-ups and serves as a refresher for established businesses and producers. Michelle Hardy (Industry Programs Consultant, SPA) is the course convenor. The program will be taught by a range of industry experts across the business, accounting, and legal sectors.
Topics include:
Legal structures for businesses and for productions, tax incentives and compliance, financial management of a production including managing cash flow and business planning;
Up-to-date information on copyright and chain of title, distribution and licensing agreements, employment law, cast and crew agreements, fringes and insurance; and
New insights into rights negotiation, film and television industry sources of finance.
The workshop will also feature a fun, fast-paced and high energy, digital speed networking event in which participants are randomly matched for a 5-minute meet and greet, giving attendees the opportunity to network with their fellow screen professionals.
If you are already involved in production and looking to get serious in terms of your business growth and project development, this course will be an invaluable two days with access to a range of industry experts.

Indian Short Film Night, Wellington
2024-05-01 19:00 - 20:30
India has the largest screen industry in the world, by output, producing double the number of films made in Hollywood each year. Nourished of course by a flourishing short film scene. In this collection Show Me Shorts has collaborated with the International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala to curate six shorts from top Indian filmmakers.
The stories span different regions, languages and flavours, but are united in their exploration of the connections between friends, family and the natural world around us – all with English subtitles
Rating: TBC

7pm Wednesday 1 May, Southern Cross Garden Bar and Restaurant

BOOK TICKETS – WELLINGTON

What does AI mean for the entertainment industries?
2024-05-01 19:00 - 20:00
Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the latest technological craze – enabling computers to create text, images, audio, and even video in mere seconds from just a short description of what the user wants.
However, like all disruptive technological developments, Generative AI has the potential to cause great harm, according to an expert in the field of game design. Associate Professor Adrian Clark is a lecturer in the University of Canterbury’s School of Product Design who describes himself as “equal parts fascinated and terrified by Generative AI”.
As the technology has improved, the results are becoming increasingly indistinguishable from real media or artistic works created by humans, allowing even the most artistically challenged person to bring their creative ideas to life.
“We’ve seen news stories of people using ChatGPT to cheat on school assignments and DeepFakes used to spread political disinformation and propaganda, but with Generative AI’s intrinsic creative focus the entertainment industries have perhaps the most to lose,” Dr Clark says. These concerns recently reached boiling point, culminating in 2023 with strikes by the Writers’ Guild of America and the Screen Actors’ Guild, both of which were calling for limits in the use of generative AI in their industries.
In his free UC Tauhere Connect public lecture, on Wednesday 1 May at the Ōtākaro 146 L1 Lecture Theatre, Dovedale campus, he will explore the subject: What does AI mean for the entertainment industries?
Associate Professor Adrian Clark is a lecturer in the University of Canterbury’s School of Product Design, where he teaches Game Design and Development. He is involved in teaching and research related to the Applied Immersive Game Design major in the Bachelor of Product Design degree, and Game Development in the Bachelor of Digital Screen (Honours) degree. With a PhD in Computer Science plus almost a decade of experience working as Head of R&D in a creative tech company he co-founded which worked extensively with film studios, Dr Clark has interests in both the technical and artistic sides of the creative industries.
UC Tauhere Connect public talk: What does AI mean for the entertainment industries? Presented by Associate Professor Adrian Clark, School of Product Design, Engineering, University of Canterbury, 7pm – 8pm, Wednesday 1 May 2024, the Ōtākaro 146 L1 Lecture Theatre, Dovedale campus, University of Canterbury, Christchurch.
Register to attend free at: www.canterbury.ac.nz/ucconnect.
It’s free to register to attend in person, to watch via Facebook livestream or view later on YouTube. Videos of UC Tauhere Connect public talks are available usually a week after the live event.

Misty Flicks Festival early submission deadline
2024-05-01
Misty Flicks is a not-for-profit independent film festival held annually in the Central region of Aotearoa, New Zealand. The festival offers a wide-ranging programme of local and indigenous cinema. It aims to introduce and unite audiences to different voices and cultures through the power of storytelling.
Misty Flicks creates a platform to nurture the careers of tomorrow’s storytellers by providing educational opportunities and workshops. It makes film accessible to its people and creates a sense of community and connectedness through the arts by connecting filmmakers and audiences in discussions and seminars based on the principles of manaakitanga.
Early festival submissions close 1 May. The festival runs 22-24 November.
https://filmfreeway.com/MistyFlicks

MariMari, campaign closing
2024-05-01
Paul Wolffram’s MariMari (fka Sanguma) is almost complete and prepping a festival premiere in July.
The team wants to fly subject Evelyn Kunda from Papua New Guinea to Aotearoa to attend the screening.
It is estimated that in Papua New Guinea, more than 200 people are killed as accused witches each year.
The documentary feature film addresses the shocking truth about sorcery accusation-related violence in Papua New Guinea to the world, and follows local human rights defender, Evelyn, as she rescues people who have fallen victim to sorcery accusation and gender-based violence. Evelyn does this work alone, while often in danger herself.

Ngā Aho Shorts, application deadline
2024-05-01
Ngā Aho Shorts in association with the NZ Film Commission, Te Māngai Pāho, NZ On Air, TMP and NZoA, is calling all production crews with a short film idea. Apply now for the 2024-2025 season of Ngā Aho Shorts funding and access one of four funding tiers designed to support a range of filmmakers.
Ngā Aho Shorts is a development pathway focused on empowering tangata whenua and te reo me ngā tikanga Māori within the film and screen industry.

Indian Short Film Night, Auckland
2024-04-30 19:00 - 20:30
India has the largest screen industry in the world, by output, producing double the number of films made in Hollywood each year. Nourished of course by a flourishing short film scene. In this collection Show Me Shorts has collaborated with the International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala to curate six shorts from top Indian filmmakers.
The stories span different regions, languages and flavours, but are united in their exploration of the connections between friends, family and the natural world around us – all with English subtitles
Rating: TBC
Auckland
7pm Tuesday 30 April, The Kingslander

BOOK TICKETS – AUCKLAND

Youth in the Booth, campaign closes
2024-04-30
We’re making a cool comedy short film adaptation featuring podcast students and their tutor Miss Queeny, teaching young people about podcasting
Synopsis: The Youth from the local neighbourhood show up to a community arts programme to learn about podcasting, things get crazy when it goes on Spotify. Miss Queeny tries to keep things together, trying to bridge the gap between students & their parents
We want to show how strong young voices are. Your help is crucial through donations to support our project, bringing our authentic local stories to life
Please donate & help us share our story! let’s make “Youth in the Booth” come to life & celebrate the amazing youth in our community?

By the Skin of Her Teeth, campaign closes
2024-04-29
A 25-minute film centered around two female politicians, leading rival parties, as they await the results of the New Zealand election. To pass the time, they reflect on their competitiveness, sacrifices made, and backlash they faced leading up to the day. One is younger and more optimistic – often getting criticized for her lack of experience and grit, and the other is older and stauncher – often getting criticized for being past her use-by date, and too aggressive.
This film is a love letter to Kiwi women in politics, and explores the lengths they’re pushed to go, as they navigate their way through a male-dominated profession.

BPM public meeting
2024-04-28 16:00 - 17:00
BPM will present a public meeting on the issues currently impacting media in NZ.
Speakers so far confirmed are:
Irene Gardiner – President of SPADA
Paul Thompson – Chief Executive of RNZ
Peter Thompson – Associate Professor in Media and Communications at Victoria University of Wellington and Chair of BPM
Sunday 28 April at 4pm via Zoom. Link below. Please use password bpm24 if requested

Missing, campaign closes
2024-04-28
Alzheimer’s-themed drama, Missing (欣欣念念), is a story about love and cherishing.
This drama short film is penned by Peixuan Liu, a Master’s Screen Production student at the University of Auckland, and executive produced by Peter Simpson.

Rehearsal & Performance for Pan-Asian Filmmakers
2024-04-27
The Directors and Editors Guild of Aotearoa New Zealand and the Pan Asian Screen Collective welcome filmmakers to Rehearsal & Performance with Michelle Ang.
Participants will have a chance to practise their craft in a fun, supportive environment; expand their knowledge of rehearsal processes; and discover language for rewarding collaborations.
Spots are limited as participants will break out into groups to rehearse scenes. We will be taking in five directors and ten actors. These include three standby and observer spots for one director and two actors.
Applications Close: Thursday, 18 April

This Bites, campaign closes
2024-04-27
THIS BITES is a 5 episodes comedy webseries, starring comedy icons Thomas Sainsbury, Chris Parker and Lara Fischel-Chisholm, plus other brilliant guest actors.
All 5 episodes were produced and directed by Roberto Nascimento, director of award winning series Sui Generis.
The show was created and written by US/NZ writer Louis Mendiola, winner of a NZTV Award for his writing on season 2 of local comedy The Adventures of Suzy Boon.
We are raising additional funds to cover the post production elements of the show – specifically SOUND DESIGN and our COLOUR GRADE. We just need 2k to get us there, as I made some fantastic deals with sound legend Luana Barnes (she worked on Dune 2!!!) and colour grade master James Elliston.
This project is silly, fun, poignant and will hopefully bring some joy to those who watch it and we get to see an incredible mix of kiwi talent doing what they do best in front of and behind the cameras. Their work deserves to be seen and we can achieve this with your help.
Friendship. Love. Family.

Bill Tito: the Unread Story, campaign closes
2024-04-24
Humans are like books, each with their distinct covers, shapes, and sizes. But the real treasure lies in the stories within, tales that make each of us unique. And one of these exceptional stories belongs to a man named Bill Tito.
‘Bill Tito: The Unread Story’ is a feel-good documentary that celebrates the unwavering dedication of Bill Tito, a self-made 77-year-old book repair specialist with dyslexia. The film highlights Bill’s ability to discover joy and purpose in life despite his limited reading ability.
With his partner-in-crime, Jane, by his side, they form an eccentric duo, infusing every moment with laughter and charm.
Through spontaneous banter and serendipitous encounters, we embark on a journey through the pages of Bill’s life, unraveling the layers of his personality and craftsmanship.

ShowNews Academy – NETWORK
2024-04-23 19:30 - 22:30 | Academy Cinema, 44 Lorne St, Auckland, New Zealand
Each month ShowNews presents a film at Academy Cinemas picked by a special film industry guest. For April, writer/producer Steve Barr has chosen NETWORK
Tickets only $10!
Happy Hour drinks from 7pm.
Screening 8:15pm.
In 1976 two of the key players in the Golden Age of Television, writer Paddy Chayefsky and director Sidney Lumet, delivered a coruscating attack – at once savage and hilarious – on the medium that made their names.
SINCE THIS SHOW WAS THE ONLY THING I HAD GOING FOR ME IN MY LIFE, I’VE DECIDED TO KILL MYSELF.
To speak Chayefsky’s Oscar-winning dialogue, Lumet enlisted a powerhouse cast list, including Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Peter Finch (as ‘the mad prophet of the airwaves’ Howard Beale), Robert Duvall, Ned Beatty and Beatrice Straight. Five of them would be nominated for Academy Awards, three would win.
I’M GOING TO BLOW MY BRAINS OUT RIGHT ON THIS PROGRAMME A WEEK FROM TODAY.
As well as its four Oscars, NETWORK was also garlanded with a quartet of Golden Globes, a BAFTA and numerous other awards. In the years since its release, its reputation has only grown: the Library of Congress granted it a place on their prestigious National Film Registry; the American Film Institute named it as one of the greatest American films of all time; and the Writers Guild of America declared its screenplay one of the ten best of all time. It remains a true classic.

After the Party - ScreenTalk, Auckland
2024-04-23 18:00 - 19:30
Hear from some of the key creatives of TVNZ smash hit, After the Party, a series many are calling the best new Kiwi offering in years.
Story creators Robyn Malcolm and Dianne Taylor and producer/director Peter Salmon come together to talk about their collaborative process, from the very earliest story conversations to the writing, all stages of production, and publicity.
Peter, Dianne and Robyn will discuss some of their learnings and how they managed challenges that inevitably arose along the way. With dynamic, talented speakers like these, this promises to be an interesting and stimulating conversation.

Sister Josephine, campaign closes
2024-04-20
Actors Alison Bruce and newcomer Jaxon Barbarich-Campbell explore a crystalised moment of empowerment from the director’s life story. Writer/director Stef Harris, producer Amanda Jenkins, cinematographer John Chrisstoffels, talented cast/crew have together created a confronting drama that aims to connect emotionally with audiences.
Sister Josephine was funded through Kopere Hou – Fresh Shorts, and has received generous sponsorship from Imagezone Cameras, Hirepool Vehicles, Wireless Rentals, Blue Light empowering youth program, Unit Services Assets, AJFILMS, Dark Horse Films, and Park Road Post.
It’s seeking support to top up production costs and complete the film with Music composition, Sound design, and Film finishing costs, for an international festival cinema release.

B-Listers, campaign closes
2024-04-20
Fundraising campaign for the pilot of a coming-of-age comedy series.
