Mel Turner: Screen NZ International executive chair on the new organisation designed to boost NZ screen industry

Several Kiwi industry leaders and screen businesses have teamed up to officially launch Screen NZ International, an industry body designed to boost New Zealand's film industry.

The organisation aims to help New Zealand remain a competitive screen destination by building relationships with clients and promoting the country internationally.

Screen NZ International executive chair Mel Turner says the organisation wants to see New Zealand be 'globally competitive'.

"It's a fierce global market out there for international productions coming into New Zealand, so we want to focus on the industry becoming more sustainable and future-focused." 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudgin
from News Talks ab Okay.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
A new organization launched on Friday to advocate for New
Zealand screen industry on a global stage. Screen new Zealand
International has been formed by leading screen businesses and industry professionals,
aimed to make New Zealand a competitive screen destination of choice.
Executive Chair of Screen New Zealand International is Maltourner and
she joins me now, good morning, Mal.

Speaker 3 (00:34):
Good morning, how are you good?

Speaker 2 (00:35):
Thank you tell me why have you set up this
new organization.

Speaker 3 (00:40):
Well, it's just something that really came out of a
noticeable need. We've sort of set it up with screen
businesses in particular in mind and particularly the international sector.
We've got industry professionals as well, and we're looking at
focusing on the long term interest in ensuring New Zealand

(01:02):
is globally competitive. It's a fierce global market out for
international productions you know, coming into New Zealand. So we
want to focus on the industry becoming more sustainable and
future focused and certainly New Zealand becoming a screen destination
of choice.

Speaker 2 (01:19):
How does this differ from the likes of organizations like
SPADA or local government organizations that promote New Zealand as
a destination a filming destination.

Speaker 3 (01:29):
I think more of at the moment, we're focused on
sort of I suppose, firstly more internally and speaking, I
suppose more to represent the voices of the businesses that
work in the industry, which, of course, you know, they
all have to have very big shoulders to shoulder the
you know, the changes within, you know, the landscape of
when we're when we're not working. So the guilds certainly

(01:53):
all have their own place and they you know, have
a very important role to represent all of their members.
We're actually focusing on looking at slightly different members, which
is which is really the screen businesses who are investing
themselves in their business, but they are quite reliant because

(02:15):
they've maybe built themselves quite specifically around you know, screen production.
So we're really looking to support screen businesses and then
also those leading professionals within the industry which also are
focused on that international sector and international investment to bring
productions into New Zealand and get our international sector moving,

(02:39):
which a little quiet you know, throughout this twenty twenty
five we've there's been a reasonable amount of struggles, so
we're just looking to sort of put the lesser known
story out there.

Speaker 2 (02:51):
Really, it's often either all on, isn't it melt and
we're shooting things all over the place.

Speaker 3 (02:56):
Or it's a big market out there. It's a large, global,
changing sort of environment as well.

Speaker 2 (03:06):
So what is New Zealand's potential when it comes to
the international screen industry. Are we meeting it or is
there more we can do?

Speaker 3 (03:13):
I think that there's look, the potential. New Zealand has
producers and studios that like to come to New Zealand
to to produce their content. I mean, they love working
in New Zealand. So we actually have a huge reputation
on the world stage. And so there's you know, obviously

(03:34):
many many people that have come before today that have
shown that what we really have is the potential to
be a lot busier and a lot more stable. Excuse me.
So you know, focus for us, I think is really
just to the potential of us having a consistent and
constant and stable and regular working industry so that we

(03:57):
can that stabilization will actually you know, support the New
Zealand and economy. Of course, because we know that you know,
when investment comes in that get spread around nationwide to
many businesses and many people and certainly a lot of wages.

Speaker 2 (04:12):
How do we get more productions down here? You know,
we're watching Hollywood very closely. They have been struggling for
a while. Do you think that they might make moves
that helps keep productions in California, you know, which that
of course could potentially impact New Zealand.

Speaker 3 (04:26):
Yeah. There's definitely a lot of things that you know,
are going on in the global environment, and we certainly
are keeping a close eye on it. But at this stage,
you know, it's quite hard to tell how much that
may affect us. But I do know that international studios

(04:47):
and streamers worldwide look to many many countries to create
their product, and so that is in New Zealand, it's
just one of those countries. And so we do need
to compete on a global level, and we do need
to be competitive, which at the moment we're not particularly
comp editive, so we're not really being looked at, you know,

(05:11):
where we could be and where we have before. And
so I think that ultimately some of these other pressures
that are going on are definitely headwims. But I don't
think that ultimately we're going to be seeing international productions
suddenly shrink. Just back to the US because you know

(05:31):
what's going on on there to to try and get
some of the incentives within California, for example, working because
there's a lot of content needs to be made for
the world.

Speaker 2 (05:41):
Well, really good to talk to you, best of luck.
Great to see the industry kind of doing something about it,
so looking forward to seeing what happens there. That was
Mel Turner, who was executive chair of Screen New Zealand International.

Speaker 1 (05:54):
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