Australian distributor Umbrella has significantly deepened its investment in New Zealand’s screen industry, acquiring rights to nearly the entire New Zealand Film Commission catalogue and building a local team to drive theatrical distribution and acquisitions.
The move is part of a wider rebrand and expansion strategy that has seen Umbrella drop “Entertainment” from its name, launch a new logo, and grow its operations across production, restoration, digital platforms, and international sales.
The company has long distributed New Zealand titles but now sees the country as a key strategic territory. Earlier this year, Umbrella hired former NZFC Head of Marketing Jasmin McSweeney to lead acquisitions and sales, followed by Luke Murray as Senior Theatrical Manager, signalling a serious commitment to the local market.
“New Zealand has a cinematic legacy that punches well above its weight,” said Umbrella General Manager Ari Harrison.
“From Peter Jackson to Jane Campion, and a comedy sensibility that often travels better than ours—it’s a small but mighty island with an audience that fiercely supports its own stories.”
Harrison praised the New Zealand Film Commission’s ongoing support for distribution and P&A, and noted the strength of the domestic audience—pointing to recent hits like Tinā, which drew strong turnout under Madman’s release.
“The NZFC even calls their audience the ‘New Zealand Army’—they really show up for local films. It’s quite different to Australia,” he said.
“We’ve had success here before, but knew we needed a team on the ground to do it properly.”
Deepening its commitment to the Aotearoa market, Umbrella now controls the rights to a vast number of classic New Zealand films, and is developing a restoration and re-release program from the New Zealand Film Commission archive that will bring many of them back to cinemas, streaming, and physical media.
Umbrella’s broader archival library now exceeds 500 titles across Australasia, and the company is working with the National Film and Sound Archive to locate original materials and undertake preservation work. Upcoming restorations include Looking for Alibrandi and BMX Bandits, and more New Zealand titles are expected to follow.
“A lot of these films have been buried in archives or tied up in estates with no clear path to release,” Harrison said.
“Our team is actively researching rights, materials, and missing links to get these stories back out into the world—not just here, but internationally.”
Classic content is also finding a new home on Umbrella’s AVOD platform Brollie and its Foxtel channel Aussie Classics. Brollie recently added 18 rare episodes of the landmark ’70s series Number 96—some of the only black-and-white episodes still in existence. The company is also considering licensing titles from other NZ-based distributors to further grow its catalogue.
Umbrella’s future-facing slate includes a strong New Zealand component. The company will distribute upcoming Kiwi features I, Object and Mum, I’m Alien Pregnant, alongside Australian and international titles like Berlinale Teddy winner Lesbian Space Princess, and We Bury the Dead, a thriller starring Daisy Ridley.
Through its production arm Sanctuary Pictures, Umbrella is also developing several genre co-productions involving New Zealand creatives and offshore partners in Canada and Ireland. The banner’s debut feature Penny Lane is Dead, an ’80s punk horror set in Adelaide, is now wrapping production.
Umbrella is also backing new voices through its Wake in Fright initiative in partnership with AACTA, offering $30,000 in funding to support emerging horror and thriller filmmakers.
The company’s rebrand—dropping “Entertainment” and unveiling a clean, modern logo by Studio Brave—will debut at the Sydney Film Festival, but Harrison says the direction is all about longevity, community, and regional storytelling.
“We don’t shout too loudly—we just love making and supporting great Australian and New Zealand films,” he said.
“Now, with boots on the ground in Aotearoa, we’re looking forward to building deeper relationships with Kiwi creatives, distributors, and audiences.”
