Cheer Up

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The world is awash with bad news at the moment, whether it’s the war in the Middle East, the planned shutterings announced by Heinz Watties and McCain in Hawkes Bay, or the lack of domestic and international production in Aotearoa this year.

It’s with a great deal of pleasure, therefore, that I got to watch director and DEGANZ board member Rebecca Tansley’s extremely feel-good documentary film Tenor: My Name Is Pati.

Having hit No. 1, it now sits at No. 2 at the NZ box office with $399,926 after just its second week in theatres.

I was fortunate to have seen the film a couple of months ago, together with a majority Pacific Island community in attendance. Then two weeks ago, we held a joint screening of the film together with WIFT at the Bridgeway in Birkenhead, with a mixture of Bridgeway, WIFT/DEGANZ attendees and others.

At both screenings, there was laughter, shouts of joy and even the occasional tear as the audience followed the hero’s journey of Pati from singing in a South Auckland resthome as a kid to the role as an adult of the Duke of Mantua in Verdi’s Rigoletto at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York.

Film has a wonderful ability to transport the soul, and Rebecca’s film did it with ease. An engaging protagonist (together with his brother Amitai and other family members). A journey filled with trials and tribulations. Wonderfully crafted. And an outcome that was rapturous in its climax, which for me was when Pati knew he had clinched the recording performance of Nessun Dorma under demanding task master, conductor Emmanuel Villaume. At the Bridgeway, the audience burst into spontaneous applause at this pivotal moment.

We should all applaud the addition of this film to New Zealand’s cinematic heritage.

DEGANZ is recognising all New Zealand filmmakers’ collective efforts this month, along with many other guilds and associations, by supporting a promotion created by Piki Films celebrating New Zealand cinema. The promotion will be part of their 10-year anniversary celebration re-release of another Kiwi film that warmed NZ hearts while highlighting child neglect—Taika Waititi’s Hunt for the Wilderpeople.

In the trying times that we are in as a screen sector in New Zealand, it’s never been more important to support our local screen talent, their work, and the contributions they and their films and programmes make to New Zealand identity, culture and society.

In the feedback we have just given to the government on the proposed changes to the New Zealand Screen Production Rebate – International 5% Uplift, we, along with all of the other above-the-line guilds and associations, stressed the need for the 5% Uplift to meaningfully advance our domestic sector and its talent, otherwise we risk becoming a country that only services international production. That’s no laughing matter.

Pati, though, was good for a laugh, some nice warm fuzzies, and a welcome escape from the uncomfortable reality that surrounds many of us.

Although I’m an arthouse fan at heart, I equally appreciate the pleasures that feel-good films like Pati give us.

Get along if you can. You won’t regret it.

 

Tui Ruwhiu
Executive Director

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The Importance of Editing

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I remember the first director’s training session for TV I attended now many years ago. Our workshop facilitator, John Harris, who went on to establish production company Greenstone, told us that one way to think of directing was like shopping: we had a shopping basket, and we had to fill it up for the editor with the right ingredients. A simple metaphor, but it worked for me at the time.

More importantly, I believe, it highlighted the importance of the editor to the creative process of crafting a story for the screen.

Editors too often are undervalued for the work they do. It’s not just about pushing buttons. It’s about utilising their creativity, knowledge and skill to elevate the material they’ve been given, which sometimes can be less than ideal.

An editor can save a director’s bacon, and often does, in factual and in narrative.

Like directing, editing is both an art and a craft. It’s one of the reasons that DEGANZ has established the Aotearoa New Zealand Screen Editor accreditation. To give the art and craft of editing its proper due when executed at a consistently high standard.

Unfortunately, editing and assistant editing can suffer from a lack of respect in the production process, especially when budgets are tight. This is unfortunate because it’s a false economy to seek to skimp in these areas and can ultimately mean budget and time are wasted, to the detriment of the project.

Another major area of concern for the Guild is the replacement of editors, particularly on feature films. Yes, failing relationships between director and editor can sometimes necessitate a change in direction. But the editor can sometimes bear the brunt of failure in other areas or because of external pressure exerted from distributors and sales agents on directors, producers and executive producers. Would a director or other HOD be replaced so easily? Of course not.

There are significant negative health and wellbeing outcomes that manifest for editors when they are replaced, particularly when it is handled poorly, as is often the case.

Equally concerning is the replacement or marginalisation of the assistant editor role. Working editors will all attest to the vital importance of this mahi and the detrimental effect on effective, efficient, quality post-production from losing assistants to ‘combo deal’ approaches from post houses, or the failure of producers to allow for, or enough time for, assistant editors to do the vital work they do.

DEGANZ also does not support the practice of multiple editors being contracted to work on a feature film. There can certainly be a need to bring in an outside editor consultant at times, to help the director and editor team look at the project with a fresh set of eyes. The hiring of multiple editors to execute a film, though, is a sausage-factory approach to the cinematic, artistic endeavour that does not recognise nor value the director-editor creative collaboration appropriately.

The DEGANZ board is now looking at how to best address these issues and is liaising with international editor bodies, examining best  practices, as well as engaging with local practitioners and entities to see what learnings and ideas we could utilise to effectively achieve outcomes that will benefit individuals and projects.

Editing is an art and craft that can make or break a project, and it deserves to be recognised for the crucial part it plays in the production process.

 

Tui Ruwhiu
Executive Director

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Cinema Still Has a Place

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A couple of weeks ago, thanks to Madman Distribution, I got to watch the Cannes Jury Prize-winning Sirat, a French – Spanish coproduction helmed by French-born director of Spanish descent, Oliver Laxe.

It’s the sort of auteur arthouse fare that reminds me why I love cinematic film as a storytelling medium.

It’s an incredibly divisive film, praised and panned in equal measure by critics.

Made on a reported budget of approximately US$7.5 million, its worldwide take to date is just under US$11 million according to Box Office Mojo. If it keeps achieving more sales, then it might break even.

Now Laxe is a Cannes darling, with all of his previous three films screening there. Throw in Pedro Almodóvar as one of the producers of Sirat, and you can see Laxe and his films have the kind of pedigree that helps make an arthouse director a success at Cannes. But he had to start somewhere.

Laxe got going with his debut feature, You All Are Captains. It premiered in the Directors’ Fortnight (Quinzaine des réalisateurs) section at Cannes in 2010, winning the FIPRESCI Prize.

The Cannes pathway to success is not new. Jane Campion has walked it. Australian Rolf de Heer has, too. As have the Dardenne brothers, Ken Loach, Ruben Östlund, and Yorgos Lanthimos, amongst others.

All of these directors have been driven to tell their stories in their own way for the big screen, and often they have had to overcome seemingly insurmountable hurdles to get their first film made.

It’s something every filmmaker struggles with.

Not every NZ filmmaker wants to make a film that gets into Cannes, though. And not every New Zealand film that gets made is Cannes fare, as witnessed by the total lack of New Zealand films screening there since the last one, Christine Jeffs’ Rain, in the sidebar Director’s Fortnight in 2001.

The last New Zealand film to screen in official competition at Cannes was Jane Campion’s The Piano in 1993, while Vincent Ward has had three films screen in main competition at Cannes, two NZ features in Vigil (1984) and The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey (1991), and international production Map of the Human Heart (1993).

What Sirat gave me, though, is confidence that cinema still has a place amid the fragmentation of screen audiences—it’s a film crafted to be seen on the big screen, with an audience. And its cinematic language is ever-present.

I also have great faith that another New Zealander will find their way into one of the sidebars or the main competition in Cannes at some point in the future, even though it’s never been tougher for filmmakers than it is now. It’s well overdue. But it will require putting aside the commercial imperative and committing wholeheartedly to artistic endeavour. And who knows, it might break even if it’s lucky.

 

Tui Ruwhiu
Executive Director

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DEGANZ Launches Editor Accreditation

The Directors and Editors Guild of Aotearoa New Zealand (DEGANZ) is proud to announce the establishment of the Aotearoa New Zealand Screen Editors (ANZSE) Accreditation for the art of editing.

ANZSE Accreditation recognises a master editor with a significant body of work that consistently meets a world-class standard.

The desire to establish ANZSE was driven by editor board members across the years wanting to recognise the world-class calibre of senior New Zealand editors, to acknowledge the mana and artistry that editors bring to their work, to provide a standard to encourage New Zealand editors to strive for, and to help identify to the international screen industry those New Zealand editors to consider for projects in New Zealand and overseas.

“ANZSE Accreditation is a mark of excellence and sets a standard for New Zealand editors to aspire to in their work and careers,” said DEGANZ President Ben Powdrell. “At the same time, it gives domestic and international producers and directors confidence that the accredited editor has a high level of technical and artistic skill.”

Led by a group of senior New Zealand editors, including DEGANZ President Ben Powdrell, Martin Brinkler ACE, Annie Collins, Tom Eagles ACE, Margot Francis, Peter Roberts and Jonno Woodford-Robinson—and with assistance from the New Zealand Cinematographers Society—a kaupapa and process was established across many months of work to make ANZSE a reality.

The inaugural recipients of ANZSE, whose work, careers and contributions were recognised at the October 2025 DEGANZ Annual General Meeting, are:

  • Annie Collins ANZSE
  • Peter Roberts ANZSE
  • Jonno Woodford-Robinson ANZSE

These recipients make up the ANZSE Accreditation Committee for 2026.

Each year, the ANZSE Accreditation Committee will thoroughly review applications from those seeking accreditation.

A maximum of two ANZSE Accreditations will be awarded each year if the committee considers the applicants to have attained the expected standard.

In exceptional and rare circumstances, the committee may award Honorary Accreditation to an editor whose body of work and reputation are well known and speak for themselves.

Applications for ANZSE Accreditation for 2026 open on 12 February and close on 31 May 2026. Accreditations will be awarded at the DEGANZ Annual General Meeting in September 2026.

A full explanation of ANZSE, required documents, and other support information to make an application is available here on the DEGANZ website.

 

Tui Ruwhiu
Executive Director

 

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2026 Is Upon Us

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While there has been a delay in the good weather arriving, it’s now back. At least for the moment where I’m sitting and writing this. In Auckland.

It’s just one of the positives of the New Year.

At the box office:

  • Tinā is currently at $6,486,864
  • Pike River sits at $1,439,550
  • Prime Minister is recording $1,094,292

We have two features screening at Sundance in Mum I’m Alien Pregnant and Big Girls Don’t Cry.

Crocodile is making a showing at Berlinale.

TOITŪ Visual Sovereignty, TENOR: My Name Is Pati, and Holy Days go to the Santa Barbara Film Fest, with Holy Days securing US theatrical distribution—not an easy feat for an NZ film.

This is New Zealand feature film success.

Success in TV is harder to gauge because it operates under a different model. That said, many shows are still being made with NZ On Air and Te Māngai Pāho support. We can be thankful that NZoA, TMP and the NZFC continue to receive government funding to finance screen industry activity.

International production in NZ is clearly happening with at least two new(ish) major projects underway. And the B.O. success of Avatar: Fire and Ash may give some hope to the future of that franchise.

At DEGANZ, we have two new board members in directors Jesse Griffen and Kim Webby, adding their significant experience and expertise to the guild’s brain trust. ASDACS has a refreshed board as well, bringing what we hope will be positive outcomes for directors and directors’ orgs on both sides of the Tasman.

The year ahead has challenges in front of us. As it does for all other orgs in the screen industry. But that’s nothing new. Every year now brings instability and change driven by local and global pressures that we just have to ride out as we have done to now.

We have some exciting workshops and events coming this year. More on these later.

And with the election called for 7 November, we all have an opportunity to help determine our futures by voting.

Wishing you the greatest success in your endeavours in 2026. DEGANZ will definitely be doing its best to support you in your efforts.

 

Tui Ruwhiu
Executive Director

 

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