Cinema of New Zealand
New Zealand cinema can refer to films made by New Zealand-based production companies in New Zealand. However, it may also refer to films made about New Zealand by filmmakers from other countries. Due to the comparatively small size of its film industry, 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 as Avatar and The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
In October 1978, the New Zealand Film Commission was formalised by Parliament under the Third 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 like The Frighteners and The Lord of the Rings qualify as New Zealand films. The impact of the New Zealand Film Commission upon the industry was significant in getting films made, coming to a definition of NZ Film, and helping establish a screen industry in New Zealand.
Most New Zealand films are made by independent 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 international film 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.
