 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Cinema of New Zealand" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(January 2011) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Cinema of New Zealand | |
|---|---|
 | |
| No. ofscreens | 411 (2010)[1] |
| Produced feature films (2024)[2] | |
| Fictional | 328 |
| Animated | 2 |
| Documentary | 117 |
| Number of admissions (2010)[1] | |
| Total | 15,300,000 |
| • Per capita | 3.6 (2010)[3] |
| Gross box office (2012)[4] | |
| Total | $145 million |
| National films | $3.19 million (2.20%) |
Thecinema of New Zealand refers to films made by New Zealand–basedproduction companies in New Zealand or films made about New Zealand byfilmmakers from other countries. New Zealand produces many films that are co-financed by overseas companies.
The history of cinema in New Zealand is almost as long as the medium itself. The first public screening of a motion picture took place in 1896. A documentary made in 1900 is the oldest surviving New Zealand film, while the first feature film made in New Zealand premiered in 1914. A small-scale industry developed between the 1920s and the 1960s, but it was not until the 1970s that locally made films began to attract significant audiences.
From the 1990s onward, New Zealand-made films have increasingly achieved international success, including both those with local funding and themes, and those with additional foreign cooperation, such asAvatar andThe Lord of the Rings trilogy.
For a list of the 328 feature films and 117 documentaries made in New Zealand, seeList of New Zealand Films.
In October 1978, theNew Zealand Film Commission was formalised by Parliament under theThird National Government.
Under Section 17 of the New Zealand Film Commission Act 1978, the functions of the commission are to:[5]
With this Act, the New Zealand film industry became more stabilised. Section 18 of the Act, entitled "Content of Films", defines what makes "a New Zealand film". To qualify, a film must have "significant New Zealand content", judged by taking into account the following:[5]
These defining aspects have in recent years caused debate on whether films likeThe Frighteners andThe Lord of the Rings qualify as New Zealand films. The impact of theNew Zealand Film Commission upon the industry was significant in getting films made, coming to a definition of "New Zealand Film", and helped to establish a screen industry in New Zealand.
Most New Zealand films are made byindependent filmmakers, often on a low budget and with sponsorship from public funding sources. Few New Zealand-made films have been specifically commissioned for the international market by internationalfilm distributors.
Recently, international film companies have become more aware of the skills of New Zealand filmmakers, and have increasingly used the country as a shooting location and also somewhere to finish production of their feature films.
Private funding for New Zealand films has often been in short supply, although for a period in the early 1980s, tax breaks resulted in a short term production boom.[6] Some New Zealand directors and actors have been ignored in large part by their own country, despite success overseas, and often had to work in the US, Australia, and the UK as a result.
The first public screening of a motion picture in New Zealand took place on 13 October 1896 at the Opera House inAuckland. The screening—which was in fact a demonstration ofThomas Edison'skinetograph[7]—was part of a show presented by Charles Godfrey's Vaudeville Company.[8] The first screening of a colour film—one using a colour process, not just a colourised black-and-white film—was on 24 December 1911 in Auckland. The film was shown simultaneously at the Globe Picture Theatre inQueen Street and the Kings Theatre on Upper Pitt Street (now theMercury Theatre[9]).
The first filmmaker in New Zealand wasAlfred Henry Whitehouse, who made ten films between 1898 and mid-1900. The oldest surviving New Zealand film is Whitehouse'sThe Departure of the Second Contingent for the Boer War (1900).
The firstfeature film made in New Zealand is arguablyHinemoa. It premiered on 17 August 1914 at the Lyric Theatre,Auckland.[10][11]
New Zealand's oldest surviving cinema is inRoxburgh inCentral Otago, which opened in the town's Athenæum Hall on 11 December 1897.[12] The editors of the local newspaper, theMount Benger Mail, wrote in the issue of 10 December:"We would draw the attention of the public to the Salon Cinématographe entertainment in the Athenæum Hall to-morrow evening. This is an opportunity which should not be missed of witnessing life scenes."[12]
Purpose-built cinemas were built from 1910 onwards, with the first being Wellington's The Kings, built in 1910. Another example is theMayfair Theatre in Dunedin, built in 1913.[13][14] The oldest surviving purpose-built cinema in New Zealand — and in the Southern Hemisphere — is theVictoria Theatre inDevonport, Auckland, built in 1912.[15]
New Zealand's was a small-scale film industry between the 1920s and 1960s. In the 1920s and 1930s,Rudall Hayward made a number of feature films on New Zealand themes.Rewi's Last Stand was probably his best, but little of this 1925 film survives. The film was remade with sound in 1940.[16][17] Independent filmmakerJohn O'Shea was active from 1940 to 1970 making New Zealand cinema; his companyPacific Films produced numerous short films as well as the three New Zealand feature films made in that period:Broken Barrier (1952) withRoger Mirams;Runaway (1964); andDon't Let It Get You (1966).[18]
However, most New Zealand-made films of the period weredocumentaries. TheNational Film Unit was a government-funded producer of short films, documentaries, and publicity material.This is New Zealand, a short film made for theWorld Expo in 1970, was extremely popular there and subsequently screened in New Zealand cinemas, garnering considerable acclaim. It used three separate projectors to create a wide-screen image. The film was restored in 2006 and shown at the 2007New Zealand International Film Festivals.[19]
In 1978, theNew Zealand Film Commission was established. Its aim was to encourage and promote the national film industry, and a number of film projects have been funded by the commission.[20]
One of the first New Zealand films to attract large-scale audiences at home wasSleeping Dogs, directed byRoger Donaldson in 1977.[21] The film, a dark, political action thriller that portrays the reaction of one man to the formation of atotalitarian government and the ensuingguerrilla war, introducedSam Neill as a leading actor.[21] The imagery of large-scale civil conflict and government repression would be realised only a few years later when the1981 Springbok Tour caused nationwide protests and clashes with police.[22]
Sleeping Dogs is also notable as the first full-length35mm feature film made entirely by a New Zealand production crew.[23] Before then, films such as 1973'sRangi's Catch had been shot in New Zealand, where they were set, but were produced and directed by foreign crews.[23]
1981 saw the release of the road filmGoodbye Pork Pie, which made NZ$1.5 million.[24] DirectorGeoff Murphy was lured away by Hollywood, but he made two other key New Zealand films:Utu (1983), about the land wars of the 1860s, and a nuclear-apocalypse science-fiction story,The Quiet Earth (1985).[25]Bruno Lawrence, who appeared in both films, became a star.[26]
Melanie Read was the first woman to write and direct a New Zealand feature film with the 1984 thrillerTrial Run.[27] In 1987Barry Barclay's filmNgati, screenplay byTama Poata and starring veteran actorWi Kuki Kaa, was released to critical acclaim and some box-office success.Ngati is recognised as the first feature film to be written and directed by a person of Māori descent.[28]
Merata Mita was the first Māori woman to write and direct a dramatic feature film, when she directedMauri in 1988.[29] An accomplished documentary film-maker, Mita made landmark documentaries includingBastion Point: Day 507 (1980), about theoccupation of land there, andPatu! (1983), a film about the controversial and violent anti-apartheid protests during the 1981 Springboks rugby tour from South Africa.[30]
The late 1980s saw the reinvention of the New Zealand short film, beginning withAlison Maclean'sKitchen Sink.[31] Instead of trying to be short features focused on dialogue and character, the new shorts tried instead to "push the envelope" in terms of visual design and cinematic grammar.[31] An explosion of visually rich and compelling works emerged that seemed to have more in common with European art-house cinema than Hollywood.[32]
Key examples of these are:The Lounge Bar (The Front Lawn),Kitchen Sink (Alison Maclean),A Little Death (Simon Perkins;Paul Swadel),Stroke (Christine Jeffs),La Vie en Rose (Anna Reeves),A Game With No Rules (Scott Reynolds),Eau de la vie (Simon Baré),O Tamaiti (The Children) (Sima Urale) which won theSilver Lion Best Short Film at theVenice Film Festival,[33] andTwo Cars, One Night (Taika Waititi), which was nominated for theBest Short Film Oscar.[34]
The early 1990s saw New Zealand film gain international recognition, most obviously withJane Campion'sThe Piano (1993), which won threeAcademy Awards.Peter Jackson'sHeavenly Creatures (1994) andLee Tamahori'sOnce Were Warriors also received international acclaim and high grosses in a number of countries.[citation needed]The Piano andHeavenly Creatures showed an increasing tendency for New Zealand films to be partially or completely funded by overseas production companies, and star non-local actors (for example,Holly Hunter andHarvey Keitel inThe Piano, andKate Winslet inHeavenly Creatures). This did not stop the migration of New Zealanders to the United States: Tamahori,Melanie Lynskey ofHeavenly Creatures and Canadian-bornPiano starAnna Paquin are now all primarily based in America.
A notable exception to the migration tendency isPeter Jackson, who continued to make films in New Zealand. Jackson's career began with low-budget comedies such asBad Taste (1987) andMeet the Feebles (1989). He was eventually noticed by Hollywood, and in the 2000s directedThe Lord of the Rings series. Although made with mainly foreign funding (helped by a tax break from the New Zealand government) and featuring a primarily international cast, Jackson filmed the films in New Zealand, using a largely local production crew, helping create an enormous skill base in the New Zealand film industry.[citation needed]
This has led to a number of prominent Hollywood films being made in New Zealand, with major international productions not only filming there but also using the country's various post-production facilities and special effects companies. Among these films areThe Last Samurai andThe Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.[citation needed] While the funding for these movies has come largely from the United States, the trend has helped New Zealand film studios and filmmakers develop skills and improve facilities.[citation needed]
However, some industry figures[who?] claim that having large international productions employ New Zealand crews has its downside. One New Zealand filmmaker recently complained that it has become difficult to employcameramen on a low-budget New Zealand film, as cameramen are now used to large wages.[35] Other filmmakers[who?] find that the opposite is true, and argue that the greater number of local professionals may have driven wages down from the relative heights of the 1980s.
In early 21st century, the amount of local content has significantly increased, withWhale Rider (2002) becoming the second-highest-grossing North American independent film of 2003 and third-highest worldwide, earning $40.1 million.[36] Other notable films includeIn My Father's Den (2004) andThe World's Fastest Indian (2005). Both films did well at the New Zealand box office, with the latter beatingOnce Were Warriors to become the highest-grossing New Zealand film at the domestic box office, earning overNZ$6.5 million; a record beaten byBoy in 2010.
Sam Neill and Judy Rymer's documentaryCinema of Unease was made in 1995.
.jpg)
The latter part of the first decade of the new century saw the expansion ofPeter Jackson's filmmaking empire, with the producer-directoroptioning the rights toThe Lovely Bones,Halo,The Dam Busters and the fantasy seriesTemeraire. Major productions such asAvatar and the 2007 blockbusterThe Water Horse used Jackson's Wellington studios and the services of the special-effects companyWeta Digital.[37] US-based video game companyUnity Software bought Weta Digital for $1.63bn in 2021.[37]
Eagle vs Shark (2007) was directorTaika Waititi's first feature film, starringJemaine Clement andLoren Horsley. The film earned overUS$1 million at the box office.[38] Waititi's filmBoy, released in 2010, topped the box office receipts for the opening week, earning more on its opening day than any previous locally made film,[39] becoming the highest-grossing New Zealand film of all time.[40] In 2014 the mockumentaryWhat We Do in the Shadows, directed by Waititi and Clement, was released to substantial critical acclaim.[41] Two years later, Waititi releasedHunt for the Wilderpeople, starring Sam Neill andJulian Dennison, a film that became the new highest-grossing opening weekend box office New Zealand film on home soil, beating the record set byBoy six years prior.[42]
New Zealand is grappling with the effect of international streaming platforms in the New Zealand market. In 2023 the New Zealand's screen producers' guild, SPADA pointed out international streamers currently 'pay no tax in New Zealand, face no regulation, and use broadband infrastructure partially funded by our Government while at the same time impact local broadcasting viewership and advertising revenue'. Regulating this would be in-line with many other countries.[43]
The New Zealand Film Archive was founded and incorporated on 9 March 1981. Film enthusiast, critic and historianJonathan Dennis (1953–2002) was a driving force behind the archive, and became its first director. The archive was set up to preserve and restore significant New Zealand film and television images. It now holds a collection of much of early New Zealand cinema film and holds public screenings of its collection.[citation needed]
Much of the early cinema film made in New Zealand has been lost, as it was printed onnitrate, which is unstable. In 1992, when film enthusiasts and the New Zealand Film Archive realised how much of New Zealand's film heritage was being lost, they mounted theLast Film Search and found 7,000 significant films, both in New Zealand and around the world.[44]
| Rank | Title | Year of release | Director | Filming location | Worldwide gross (US$)[45] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Avatar | 2009 | James Cameron | Wellington | $2,923,706,026 |
| 2 | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | 2003 | Peter Jackson | New Zealand-wide | $1,138,267,537 |
| 3 | The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey | 2012 | Peter Jackson | New Zealand-wide | $1,017,107,150 |
| 4 | The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies | 2014 | Peter Jackson | New Zealand-wide | $962,253,946 |
| 5 | The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug | 2013 | Peter Jackson | New Zealand-wide | $959,079,095 |
| 6 | A Minecraft Movie | 2025 | Jared Hess | Huntly andAuckland | $957,749,195 |
| 7 | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | 2002 | Peter Jackson | New Zealand-wide | $938,242,927 |
| 8 | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | 2001 | Peter Jackson | New Zealand-wide | $888,195,122 |
| 9 | King Kong | 2005 | Peter Jackson | Wellington andAuckland | $556,906,378 |
| 10 | The Last Samurai | 2003 | Edward Zwick | Taranaki Region | $454,627,263 |
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Queensland Art Gallery, Contemporary Pacific Art Collection{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)| Personnel | | |
|---|---|---|
| Production companies and studios | ||
