The Film Commission has five business units.
- Development and Production
- Talent Development
- Marketing
- International (which houses Incentives, Screen Attraction, and Enquiries)
- Te Rautaki Māori
There are three support groups, Business Affairs, Finance and Resources.
Corporate
Development and Production
Want to make a feature film or documentary? Then our Development and Production team are the people to talk to. The team is headed by Leanne Saunders and made up of members Lloyd Meiklejohn, Marc Ashton, Mechele Harron, Christina Andreef, Vicky Jackways and Tom Kelly.
Turning ideas into films
This team develops exciting ideas into great films. They will tell you what we can do to help your feature or documentary idea become a film, including script, shoot and post-production. Enquiries about Early Development Fund (EDF) and Advanced Development Fund (ADF) applications should be sent to Mechele and about production investment applications should be sent to Marc. This unit’s focus is working with filmmakers to create the best possible films, so if you want general assistance with your career then you need to talk to our Talent Development team.
Talent Development
Need help with your career? Want to make some connections here or overseas? Would you like to make a short film? Then contact our Talent Development team. It is led by Dale Corlett and comprises Jude McLaren, Ange Senior and Nia Phipps.
Developing careers
Our focus is on finding, fostering, connecting and progressing exceptional New Zealand filmmaking talent. We help in the development of careers and making connections for you both here and overseas. We want to help local and expat producers, directors, writers and actors. The team is also responsible for our relationship with industry guilds and organisations, and for supporting short films, which are a valuable stepping stone to feature films.
Marketing
Do you want to tell the world about your film? Our marketing team is run by Jasmin McSweeney and comprises of Kate Larkindale, Hayley Weston, Molly Littlejohn and Tracey Brown. We are focussed on getting more people watching great New Zealand feature films, both here and overseas.
What we do
Jasmin is the person to talk to about dealing with sales agents, distributors and major festivals. Kate focuses on publications and marketing collateral for films, and oversees our video-on-demand (VOD) platform. Hayley co-ordinates festival submissions and assists Jasmin in promoting New Zealand films. Tracey looks after film materials and deliveries. Molly assists Jasmin and the team. For all media enquiries, please contact Jasmin McSweeney.
Te Rautaki Māori
Do you have a great Māori story you want to tell? We greatly value our unique Māori culture, and films with strong cultural elements are among the most successful in which we have invested , both here and overseas.
Our team
Karen Te O Kahurangi Waaka-Tibble is the NZFC's Pou Whakahaere and leads on implementing Te Rautaki Māori with assistance from Kathryn Graham and Chantelle Watts. Feel free to contact any one of these staff members with enquiries related to Māori stories. We want to help you make great Māori films for global audiences.
International Team
The International Team looks after Incentives, International Screen Attraction and International Relations. This team works with many organisations and individuals both here and overseas. Catherine Bates administers the Government’s New Zealand Screen Production Grant (NZSPG). Chris Payne connects New Zealand and international talent and works with government agencies offshore on co-production treaties. Philippa Mossman is responsible for attracting international productions to New Zealand and connecting them with our local industry.
Support team
Supporting Catherine, Chris and Philippa are Chris Tyson, Mel Read, Jacqui Wood, Nicola Lemberg and Pam McCabe.
Business Affairs
The Business Affairs team is Rochelle Cooney, Katie Baker, Kate Mooney, Grace Alexander and Bonnie Mahon.
Rochelle, Katie, Grace and Bonnie are responsible for all contractual matters while Kate manages the Te Ahi Kā programme and provides legal and adminstraive support.
Finance
Our Finance team is headed by Mladen Ivancic and includes Catherine Robinson, Dominique Fromont and Carol Wang. They are responsible for managing the New Zealand Film Commission's financial and information management systems.
What we do
Mladen is responsible for the administration of co-production applications and works alongside Government agencies on the negotiation of new co-production agreements. Dominique manages royalty reports and film income from domestic and international distributors, sales agents and collection agencies. Catherine manages the distribution of film income to investors and filmmakers once it has been collected by us.