David Wilks: Wētā Workshop co-CEO and COO on the Memorandum of Understanding with Rukun

Wētā Workshop has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with a Saudi Arabian princess. 

The agreement is part of five new commercial partnerships signed by Kiwi and Saudi businesses, valued at $100 million. 

Creative organisation Rukun was founded by HRH Princess Noura bint Saud bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and will work with Wētā to help grow Saudi Arabia's creative economy. 

Wētā Workshop co-CEO and COO David Wilks told Mike Hosking they’ve increasingly diversified over the years, and Saudi Arabia is the next step in the process. 

He says the opportunities are significant – the country is changing at a great rate and is looking for the kinds of talents Wētā has. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
I've got some good news on the international investment front.

(00:02):
Where to Workshop you'll know the name. They've signed a
memorandum of understanding in m O you with Saudi Arabian
Creative Broken. The deal aims to boost creative and cultural exchange.
It includes training and skill development and shared knowledge. And
David Wilts's the Way to Workshop co CEO, Chief Operating Officer,
and he is with us from Saudi Arabia.

Speaker 2 (00:20):
Morning, Good morning to you, Mike.

Speaker 1 (00:21):
How long? How long has this been in the pipeline.

Speaker 2 (00:24):
We've probably been working our way through these relationships for
the last year, year and a half. It's obviously been
a journey of building, getting to know, getting to know
each other. But it's an exciting, exciting developments for us.

Speaker 1 (00:39):
And what are the prospects? Where does this go? Do
you think?

Speaker 2 (00:42):
Yeah? Great question. Look, I think really it's the history
of where we've come from and where we're heading. We've
been a company work sort of best known for the
work we've done in design and physical effects in the
movie industry, but over the years we've diversified increasingly and
about ten years ago when we did scale of our
War the Gallipoli Exhibition at Tapapa that it was a

(01:03):
bit of a crossroads for us in terms of moving
into immersive experiences, and that's now taken us into museums
and attractions and things around the world. We've been involved
in these sort of projects in China, in Europe and
in the Middle East. We've got a couple of live
projects working through in the United Emirates and Dubai and
Abadubbi and saud Arabia is sort of the next step really,

(01:26):
So the opportunities up here are significant. This country's changing
at a very great rate and looking for the kind
of talents that we have. So it's, yeah, a great opportunity.

Speaker 1 (01:36):
Is it the country or the region as well? When
I say the region the Middle East.

Speaker 2 (01:40):
Generally, yeah, I think it's the region. I mean, as
I said, it was a sort of ua that prought
us up here. We worked, we're very fortunate to work
on one of the Dubai government's pavilions for the World
Expo twenty twenty twenty one. It was supposed to be
twenty twenty and it was a twenty twenty one expo,
but that was a great sort of oportunity for us,

(02:00):
I guess, to sort of find our way into the
Middle East and start to see what the potential is
up here.

Speaker 1 (02:05):
What role does the country play, you know, Todd McLay
trade New Zealand selling us to the world.

Speaker 2 (02:11):
I think that's for us. It's really you know, it's
really helpful, especially where relationships are such a massive part
of how business is done here and so seeing that
we're being supported and part of a business delegation of
a whole bunch of major New Zealand companies, it just
sort of helps to shine your star. Not everybody up

(02:32):
here knows exactly who we are. Once we start to
explain our background industry and the projects and the things
we've worked on, it will kind of makes sense. But
it just sort of helps, I think with the overall
brand presence for New Zealand, and you know, we obviously
benefit from that.

Speaker 1 (02:46):
Fantastic David Wilkes, who's the wind to work shomp Co
CEO out of Saudi Arabia for us this morning.

Speaker 2 (02:51):
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