How do you work with children to get great performances?
This May, the Directors and Editors Guild of Aotearoa New Zealand is offering training on directing children with sought-after acting coach Miranda Harcourt. Directors can apply for the day-long workshop in Auckland on May 7 or tune in to a 2-hour Zoom seminar on May 11, on a Wednesday night.
Workshop
From her years of experience working as an actor, acting coach and director, Miranda Harcourt has developed quick, simple tools to get child actors where they need to be. On May 7, participants will spend a full-day with Miranda learning approaches, tools and exercises that will help you to help your child actors give their best.
We will also have a few young actors helping us out at the workshop and two directors will have the opportunity to rehearse a scene.
When: Saturday 7 May 2022, 9:30am – 5pm
Where: The Community of Saint Luke, 130 Remuera Road, Remuera, Auckland 1050
Travel support is available for Full members of DEGANZ.
Applications close: Wednesday 27 April, 10AM. More info >
Online Seminar
In this online seminar, Miranda Harcourt will discuss some of her successful tools for working with child actors.
Directors will see case studies that will help you implement these tools in auditions, rehearsals and sets. This will be an insightful session answering your burning questions on how to direct children well.
https://www.deganz.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Behind-the-Scenes-The-Changeover-1210px-compressed.jpeg4231209admin/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/DEGANZ_logo_home.pngadmin2022-04-12 10:57:342022-04-12 17:46:21How to Direct Child Actors
I should preface by saying that I never planned to be working in the film and television industry. The honest truth is that when I finished school and decided to go to university, Film and Television papers seemed like a fun choice in amongst English, Sociology, Philosophy, and Art History. As it turned out, the Film and Television papers were the most engaging and fun, and that drove me into doing a Masters in Creative and Performing Arts, specialising in writing and directing for film. After graduation, my first paying gig in the industry was a small assistant editor role through one of my tutors. She connected me with a post-production supervisor who was helping facilitate a short film cutting from his house. It was exciting to be working on something film-related and I got paid a sweet $100.
Meanwhile, another contact through the same tutor, got in touch looking for an assistant editor on a children’s television drama. This would be my first dip into a longer form of drama, as well as a show that had quite a few VFX to contend with. It was at this point that I really began to get hooked into post-production. Even though pickings can sometimes be slim in our industry, I made the conscious decision to only do drama work which is where my passion lay. I was in a position in my life where I had very little financial out-goings and personal commitments so I let myself be open to opportunities, even if they weren’t my original plan. I was in no hurry to make the leap into editing and was hungry to get as much experience as I could.
Editor Jochen FitzHerbert editing Emmy Award-winning series ‘INSiDE’ from his home / Photo: Supplied
It was about five years of assisting work before my break into editing happened. I had assisted on a couple seasons of Power Rangers and one of the regular editors was starting back late due to a scheduling conflict. The returning producer offered me those blocks and I made the quick decision to make the official move to being an editor. Power Rangers was a great first show to cut as I was familiar with it from my assisting time there, but also it had the resources to have a big post team and manageable schedule.
The jump from assistant to editor is one of the trickiest things to manoeuvre. You forge a career as an assistant and work with a bunch of people around town, building a reputation only to have to turn on that and say that you are not that thing any more. Work can be slow in this transitional period but if you dig around enough there are little jobs you can flex your muscles on like low-budget web series or assemble editing.
As the Power Rangers season was finishing, Spartacus started shooting in Auckland. No, I did not get hired for Spartacus, but a lot of great local editors did which meant there was a gap in the industry. It was a perfect storm where the industry was booming and everyone was busy so there was room for people to step up. One of the directors I had just worked with on Power Rangers was going onto one of the said local dramas and he thankfully took me with him. From here, I felt I had my foot in the door.
My advice to anyone starting out now is don’t feel like you have to hurry. Make every job a learning experience and forge lasting connections with people you work with. You never know where or who your next job might come from.
About Jochen FitzHerbert
Jochen is an award-winning film and television editor with a long list of credits including Creamerie, Mystic, Power Rangers and The Gulf, for which he won an NZTV Award for Best Editing in a Drama in 2020. He also edited the international Emmy winning series INSiDE, which also won him a Webfest Award for Best Editing.
How I Got Started in the Industry is a guest blog series from the Directors and Editors Guild of Aotearoa New Zealand (DEGANZ). Our members reflect on how they made their way into assistant editing, editing, and directing—with no two stories the same. They offer advice for those starting out. Get in touch with admin@deganz.co.nz if you’re a member and would like to share your story.
https://www.deganz.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Jochen-FitzHerbert_How-I-Got-Started-in-the-Industry-BLOG-Banners.png6751200admin/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/DEGANZ_logo_home.pngadmin2022-04-07 18:21:022022-04-07 21:05:55Editor Jochen FitzHerbert: How I Got Started in the Industry
Film Construction’s Perry Bradley (DEGANZ) has been nominated for the Best Direction category at Australia’s 43rd AWARD Awards.
The nomination is for his work on NZ Blood campaign Unseen Emergencies, which details the need for blood supply and the importance of donating. New Zealander Alex O’Shaughnessy is also a finalist for Best Editing on the campaign.
The AWARD Awards attract over 2,000 entries in the following categories: Advertising, Design, Craft, Film & Entertainment, Purpose, Innovation, Media & Planning. The Australasian Writers and Art Directors Association hosts the annual ceremony to celebrate and support the creative industries. It will take place in Sydney on May 20th.
Here is the complete list of finalists. All the best to Perry and the other Kiwi nominees.
https://www.deganz.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Unseen-emergencies-.png4561200admin/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/DEGANZ_logo_home.pngadmin2022-04-07 17:54:312022-04-07 18:02:54Perry Bradley Among Finalists at 2022 AWARD Awards
Charming local drama Poppy has been awarded Best Narrative Feature at the Socially Relevant Film Festival in New York. DEGANZ member Jonno Woodford-Robinson edited the feature and worked with Amanda Mulderry (DEGANZ), who was first assistant editor.
Released in New Zealand in 2021, Poppy tells a story of a Kapiti teenager who is eager for independence and a chance at love. It’s the first Kiwi feature to cast an actor with Down syndrome in a leading role.
The Socially Relevant Film Festival focuses on socially relevant content that promotes human stories and raises awareness of social problems. Through the medium of cinema, SRFF aims to expand knowledge about diversity and create a world free of violence, crime and hate.
Congratulations to Jonno, Amanda and the rest of the Poppy team!
https://www.deganz.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Poppy-LindaNiccol.jpeg321845admin/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/DEGANZ_logo_home.pngadmin2022-04-06 07:14:302022-04-05 17:20:37Poppy Wins at the Socially Relevant Film Festival
Dive into the process, craft and career of a director.
PISA and DEGANZ welcome new and emerging Pacific Islands directors to apply for this two-day practical guide, taught by director Chris Dudman.
Chris will explore the directing process from his own personal experience on a variety of directing assignments, which includes commercials, long-form documentary, short film and TV drama. He will discuss with participants the way he prepares (analyses scripts, casts, rehearses actors, storyboards), the way he directs actors and camera, and the way he works with editors and composers during post-production.
Taking a warts and all approach, he will use highlights and low-points as examples, showing how he adapts this process to the various forms of work he’s directing. In doing so, he’ll touch on:
the differences between being a gun for hire and working on projects he’s instigated
collaboration and compromise
the director/producer relationship
making decisions under pressure
avoiding pitfalls
the role of chance and luck…
His intention is to create a dialogue in the workshop – about process and what is really involved in directing as a career. And, most importantly, why it has been worth it.
Workshop Details
When: Saturday 14 May 2022, 9:30am – 5pm Sunday 15 May 2022, 9:30am – 4pm
Where: Hawke Sea Scouts, 55 West End Road, Herne Bay, Auckland
COVID-19 Safety: For the safety of yourself and others:
Do not attend if you are sick with COVID-19, cold or flu symptoms or have been asked to self-isolate.
Face masks must be worn.
Please observe 1 metre physical distancing.
We may organise Rapid Antigen Testing on the first day.
About Chris Dudman
Chris’ career has involved writing and directing short films, commercials, feature and series documentary and series TV drama. He directed short film successes The Graffiti of Mr Tupaia and Choice Night, and later co-wrote and directed Harry, the gritty crime drama series starring Oscar Kightley and Sam Neill. He wrote and directed The Day that Changed My Life, the multi-award winning documentary about Christchurch’s devastating earthquake, and directed two stand-alone episodes of James Patterson’s true crime anthology series Murder is Forever for U.S. company Stephen David Entertainment. Chris was also a founding partner of and director at Auckland TV commercials production company Robber’s Dog Films.
To Apply
Applications Close: Tue 3 May, 10AM
This workshop is open to directors of Pacific Islands descent who are members of either PISA or DEGANZ.
Please complete the application form below and email your CV to tema@deganz.co.nz. Your CV should clearly list your credits and include relevant details, such as year of release, format, festival selection, commissioners and/or platforms where your work has been publicly screened.
Places are limited – PISA will select based on applications and email you to confirm.
This workshop is part of a Directors and Editors Guild of Aotearoa New Zealand initiative aimed at supporting the development of emerging Pan-Asian, Pasifika and Māori directors
