Tag Archive for: DEGANZ board

Welcome to this Year’s DEGANZ Board

Welcome to the 2023-2024 DEGANZ Board, elected at the recent AGM on 21 October!

Thank you to returning members Robyn Paterson (President), Steven Chow (Vice-President), Phil Gore (Treasurer), Margot Francis, Rāhera Herewini-Mulligan (Ngāi Tūhoe/Ngāi Tai/Te Whānau a Apanui), Celia Jaspers, Te Rurehe Paki, Ben Powdrell, and Gaysorn Thavat together with our three new members for taking on another year of advocating for Aotearoa’s directors, editors, and assistant editors.

We warmly welcome new members, Chris Dudman, Justin Scott (Ngāpuhi), and Rebecca Tansley.

Chris Dudman

Chris Dudman

Chris Dudman’s film-making career started in 1990 when ‘Blackwater Summer’, his graduation film at the Royal College of Art in London, was nominated for a Student Oscar and went on to win numerous international awards. He spent several years directing and editing arts documentaries for television in the UK before moving back to New Zealand. He has written and directed one off documentaries and documentary series for New Zealand television including New Zealand at War, Zoo, Protecting the Border and the critically acclaimed, The Day That Changed My Life. He directed two NZFC short films – The Graffiti of Mr. Tupaia and Choice Night – and he was also the lead director and co-writer of Harry, the gritty TV3 crime series starring Sam Neill and Oscar Kightley. More recently directed two episodes of James Patterson’s true crime anthology drama series Murder Is Forever for Discovery ID USA and the dramatic sequences in the award-winning TVNZ docu-drama By the Balls. Chris has also directed Television commercials throughout his career, firstly with Silverscreen and then through his own production company Robber’s Dog Films. His latest offering is New Zealand’s favourite ad of the moment, the three-legged dog for Trustpower.

Justin Scott

Justin Scott (Ngāpuhi) is a Director and Producer who prides himself in sharing stories from underrepresented communities. As a Queer, Māori, Neurodiverse man living with ADHD, his practice often touches upon stories from these communities and explores intersectionality. Currently, Justin is working as a director and associate producer for upcoming TVNZ series Four Go Flatting – following four young men with intellectual disabilities tackling flatting and independence for the first time. He has been working as a director for Sunday morning series Attitude for the past four years, also directing on the company’s children’s show George and Me for HEIHEI, and intersectional series What’s the Disabili-tea for RNZ. Alongside his directing work, Justin has produced numerous short films with a Te Ao Māori focus including He Hekenga Tūhura and HAKA HAHA. Both of these films have had successful international festival runs, with both premiering internationally at the world’s largest indigenous film festival ImagineNATIVE in Toronto. Prior to his work in the documentary space, Justin cut his teeth working in Children’s television including Let’s Get Inventin’ and Sticky TV.

Rebecca Tansley

Drawing on a long career in storytelling across the media Rebecca has been focused on telling stories for the screen for more than ten years as a director, writer and producer working across documentary, drama and the performing arts. Her award-winning documentaries Crossing Rachmaninoff and The Heart Dances have screened at festivals around the world, in cinemas throughout New Zealand and on Netflix and HBO respectively. Her film of a live opera, Semele, won a 2022 NZTV award for best Entertainment Programme while her short film of the same year, The Finding enjoyed more than a dozen festival outings including Academy Award-accredited In the Palace and Show Me Shorts. Her latest film with NZ Opera, The Strangest of Angels, premiered in the New Zealand International Film Festival in 2023 and was awarded Special Mention for Extraordinary Artistic Achievement at the 60th Golden Prague International Television Festival. Rebecca is currently developing her third feature documentary and has a feature screenplay in development.

A special thank you to Caroline Bell-Booth, Sam Kelly, and Annie Collins, who are stepping away after dutifully serving on the board.

You can see this year’s board’s bios here!

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First Look at New Maori Action Feature ‘Ka Whawhai Tonu’

The new action-adventure drama KA WHAWHAI TONU has hit the worldwide market at Cannes. It is written by DEGANZ member Tim Worrall and edited by DEGANZ Board Member Te Rurehe Paki.

Set in Aotearoa in 1864, the film reveals the story of a crucial battle in the land wars between Māori and Colonial forces. With impossible odds between the armies, it shows courage and heroism from the Indigenous people. The historical drama, filmed in Te Reo Māori, follows two teenagers forced to make adult decisions and take hold of their destinies.

The film introduces young actors Paku Fernandez and Hinerangi Harawira-Nicholas in the lead roles. It also stars Temuera Morrison (Ngāti Whakaue, Ngati Maniapoto), Cliff Curtis (Ngāti Rongomai, Ngāti Pikiao), and Jason Flemyng (X-Men: First Class).

NZFC’s He Pounamu Te Reo Māori Feature Fund Initiative, New Zealand on Air, and Te Māngai Pāho provided funding for the feature. Tim also received assistance from the Sundance Native Lab.

KA WHAWHAI TONU is set to release on Matariki Weekend in 2024. This release corresponds with the 160th anniversary since Chief Rewi Maniapoto refused to surrender and proclaimed, 

E hoa, ka whawhai tonu mātou, Āke! Āke! Āke! (Friend, we will fight on forever, forever and forever!).

This famous phrase still leads to calls for sovereignty today. 

As Tim said to The Hollywood Reporter, 

It has been a great privilege to be part of telling this story to honour our courageous ancestors who fought and died to ensure that we survived.

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Elected DEGANZ Board for 2022/2023

Directors and Editors Guild of Aotearoa New Zealand is thrilled to present our board for 2022/2023. Members elected to the board at the 2022 Annual General Meeting are:

Director Robyn Paterson, President
Director/Editor Steven Chow, Vice-President
Accountant Phil Gore, Treasurer

National Executive:

Director Caroline Bell-Booth
Editor Annie Collins
Editor Margot Francis
Editor Rāhera Herewini-Mulligan
Director/Editor Celia Jaspers
Director Sam Kelly
Director Rupert Mackenzie
Editor Te Rurehe Paki
Editor Ben Powdrell
Director Gaysorn Thavat

We welcome Caroline Bell-Booth, Celia Jaspers, Rupert Mackenzie, Te Rurehe Paki and Ben Powdrell who join the National Executive for the first time. Furthermore, we want to say thank you to our returning board members.

We say goodbye and a big thank you to Howard Taylor who has served on the board since the Guild began in 1995 and was President between 2016 and 2021. Thank you to Dr Gabriel Reid who has been a board member for over 10 years, including as Vice President. DEGANZ also farewells directors Renae Maihi and Stallone Vaiaoga-Ioasa this year. We thank everyone immensely for serving the Guild over their terms and wish them all the best.

Finally, thank you to all members who voted in the board election at the AGM last week.

Learn more about our board members

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