Staff.
Tommy Honey - Director
Tommy Honey has a background in education and creative management. He has taught in...
John Reid - Head tutor
John Reid is the Head Tutor and manages the delivery of the curriculum. This include...
Alison Langdon - Programme Co-ordinator
Alison Langdon is the Programme Co-ordinator responsible for co-ordinating the visit...
Jessica Charlton - Technician
Jessica Charlton is the Technician responsible for managing the technical aspects of...
Adèle Chapman - Receptionist/ Administrator
Adèle Chapman is the Receptionist/Administrator responsible for the operational sup...
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Welcome to the New Zealand Film & Television School
Welcome to The New Zealand Film and Television School, an environment where committed individuals can develop their creative, technical and business skills in order to participate in, and contribute to, a viable film and production industry in New Zealand.
The Film School specialises in teaching on film and with film. It's the only industry-run school in New Zealand and is unique with its visiting tutor programme, where tutors come into the school direct from the industry.
Learning to be a filmmaker isn't something that be can be taught from a book. Here at The Film School you learn-by-doing, through a combination of hands-on experience and visiting tutors who are experts in their fields, and enough supporting theory to backup the practical applications. You gain experience at writing, directing and editing, in lighting, camerawork and sound.
We welcome people with flair and dedication and a passionate commitment to New Zealand film and New Zealand stories, people who are the future of the film industry in New Zealand and beyond. We welcome storytellers to create a blueprint; potential directors to translate it into visual language; future technicians to realise the story and prospective producers to turn it into reality.
We know the industry is a volatile, creative and challenging milieu, so we provide you with the training and support to fulfil your aspirations.
FILM STUDENTS GET RED CARPET CLOSE-UP
Reprinted courtesy The Dominion Post, June 2008
In a twist almost good enough to be in a movie, the film students were recruited as paparazzi
Students from The New Zealand Film and Television School were thrilled to be invited to the premiere of Paul Murphy's Second Hand Wedding at Wellington's celebrated Embassy Theatre, especially since they knew that many Film School graduates had worked on the film.There was only a tiny price to pay - first they had to be the red carpet welcoming committee.
FILM SCHOOL'S MATT HENLEY WINS AGAIN
After winning the New Zealand section of the 2007 Kodak Film School competition for his work as director of photography on Manslaughter, one of three films his class made as their final graduation projects, Mr Henley then discovered he had won the Asia Pacific section.
The annual Kodak competition is part of the world Student Filmmaker Programme and is designed to encourage outstanding young filmmakers who specialise in cinematography. Matt Henley’s work was in competition against student films from Australia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Thailand and Taiwan.
MODELS OF EFFICIENCY, ON A SMALL SCALE
Reprinted courtesy of the Dominion Post
Size matters for these Wellington film school graduates, and small is good.
Some of the graduates from The Film School in Wellington are downsizing their careers, in the best possible way. Three of the school's graduates – Damian Seagar, Aleks Sakowski and Naomi Wallwork – are working for the miniatures unit of Wimbleweather Productions, which is doing effects work for Prince Caspian, the next in the Narnia series of movies. The miniatures shooting unit is part of the visual effects department of a film, and involves shooting the effects footage of scale models of sets and other elements, which are then blended with the other shots.
Belindalee Hope, production manager for the miniatures unit says all three graduates share a hardworking, yet easygoing, attitude.
Mr Seagar joined the unit as a lighting trainee under the guidance of Alex Funke, the supervising director of visual effects photography, who has worked on special effects on everything from the original Battlestar Galactica to Total Recall and Lord of the Rings.
COWLEY PICKS HENLEY
Crew 13's Matt Henley has won the 2007 Kodak Film School competition for his work as DP on Manslaughter, one of Crew 13's three graduation films.
Matt studied film theory at Victoria University before deciding to head to the Film School in 2006 to learn the practical aspects of film making. He cites cinematographer Harris Savides as an influence and says he admires the dark and high contrast style of films such as The Game and Yards. When director Jonathan Withey wanted a dark and seedy look for Manslaughter, Mary Anne Bourke's screenplay about an ex-con who is blackmailed into committing a murder, Matt chose Kodak Vision 2 500T 7218 fast tungsten stock. He knew the crew would have to shoot quickly because of the number of locations, and knew also that the stock was ideal for working in low light conditions and with night street lighting.
FILM SCHOOL GETS FUTURE IN FOCUS
Reprinted courtesy of the Dominion Post
A few days at Helm's Deep encouraged one man to pursue a film career.
When Tim Butters took a few unofficial days off school in his sixth form year to be an orc in Lord of the Rings, he never imagined that in a few years he'd be the director of photography on a film at the New Zealand Film and Television School.
Mr Butters, 22, had long been interested in film and had studied film and television at secondary school. However, his interest in his studies didn't stop him from signing up as an extra on LOTR when a friend suggested he might like to come along. And besides, for a 16-year-old, the money was very nice, thanks.
GRADUATE PRODUCER 3RD TIME WELLINGTON 48 HOURS WINNER
48hours filmmaking competition names Wellington winner. Previous winners take it again. And again!
Once again the winners of the Wellington heat of the 48HOURS film competition were announced (June 2008) as being Producer Bonnie Slater and Director Sam Kelly, who were thrilled to be chosen for the third time to represent Wellington at the national level of the competition with their juvenile delinquent film Darlene.
NEW DIRECTION FOR FILM SCHOOL GRADUATES
Reprinted courtesy Otago Daily Times
2006 Arts Foundation Laureate, cinematographer Alun Bollinger is one of the film industry professionals supervising students from the Film School’s Crew 12 on their graduation project – three 10-minute shorts shot on 16mm film.
AlBol, as he is widely referred to in the film business, is renowned for his recent work on River Queen and numerous other films stretching back three decades: Goodbye Pork Pie, Heavenly Creatures, and Perfect Strangers to name but a few. He is a member of the New Zealand Film and Television School Trust and enjoys his annual involvement with the about-to-graduate students. He says: 'There’s something about working with students which gives me a fresh view of how we work in the film business. They bring a fresh approach to the work – they aren’t afraid to try things, which is something we should all be open to'.
TRAINEES SEEKING NEW DIRECTION
Reprinted courtesy the Dominion Post
Attracted by the bright lights of Wellywood, people from around the world are enrolling at the New Zealand Film and Television School.
Here's a challenge. Write a script for a five-minute film, direct actors for day, and then spend the next fortnight doing every other job that goes into making a film.
That was the task facing everyone from Crew 12 at The New Zealand Film and Television School’s Crew 12 recently, ending with the screening of the resulting 16 five-minute dramas to a packed audience at Wellington’s City Gallery.
It was encouraging to see works that displayed an increasing confidence in mastering the technical aspects of storytelling, Film School head tutor, director John Reid, said.
CREW 11'S AZUSA YAMASHIRO PAYS FLYING VISIT
She came, she trained, she won an award. Now Azusa Yamashiro, known fondly to one and all at The Film School and beyond as Oshi, is working in Tokyo on Rain Fall, a film directed by Tsui Hark and shot in Tokyo and New York, with post production in Sydney.
The film stars Gary Oldman as the chief agent in the Tokyo CIA bureau who comes up against Kippei Shiina playing the assassin John Rain. It has a reported budget of US$12million.
Oshi popped over from Sydney (December 2008) where the film has been completing sound post-production, to check out The Film School's new premises in Vivian Street, Wellington city. Along with most graduates she is envious of the facilities (the 60-seat cinema, the production office and the studio) that current and future students will be able to use.
'CAREFUL' at Belladonna Festival
Crew 10 graduation film (You Can't Be) Too Careful screened at the Belladonna Festival in June 2006. Co-creators director Naomi Wallwork and writer Tom Goulter subsequently worked on a Fringe film together. Tom accompanied the film to Christchurch to lend his unique blend of wit, charm and self-aggrandising (sorry, self-EFFACING) candour to the proceedings.
The film is now part of a 'Beneath the Radar' compilation DVD, put together by the Belladonna Film Trust.
SIPF FUNDS JASON HOWDEN'S SHORT FILM
Crew 9's Jason Howden has been granted Screen Innovation Production Fund funding for his short film, Veil. The SIPF panel was impressed with Jason's proposal. They received 145 applications in their May round, and offered grants to 23 of these.
Jason, who won the Flying Five Awards in 2005 for Auto-ma-ton, says it’s great to have a funding body that encourages experimentation and creativity in the industry. He says the SIPF has given him and his team the means to create a very special short film. Veil is a contemporary fairytale, based inside the fevered imagination of a man traumatized by tragedy. The film will place live-action characters in a strange illustrated world, combining modern motion-graphics techniques with a compelling story.