Steve Newall: Flicks.co.nz editor on the winners from New Zealand Screen Awards 2025

A non-Kiwi Best Actor winner and acclaimed recognition for a late director’s final film were among the notable moments of this year’s New Zealand Screen Awards.

The late Lee Tamahori’s historical drama, The Convert, scored five major awards including Best Director: Drama Feature.

John Lithgow also added a Kiwi award to his collection, having been named Best Actor in a Feature for his performance in The Rule of Jenny Pen.

Flicks.co.nz editor Steve Newall recapped the awards and went through all the other big winners.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

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

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Okay, So if you weren't awake already a little bit
of tool there, there's a stink fist. They played Spark
Arena last night and they're playing tonight. Just wondering if
any of our lists went.

Speaker 1 (00:21):
Apparently they did a no.

Speaker 2 (00:22):
Phone They did a phone band so you couldn't video
or take any photographs until the last song, which I
think is an absolutely excellent idea. Here to talk entertainment
now is editor at flicks dot cot o zed Steve Neil,
Good morning.

Speaker 3 (00:37):
Good morning. I didn't go to tull, but I did
see the set list and apparently they it looks like
they had a no hits policy as well.

Speaker 2 (00:43):
Oh dear okay, if you went, if that's your kind
of thing, text me ninety two eighty two and tell
us how it went. Okay, big night on Friday night
for well, I suppose the screen industry was the New
Zealand Screen Awards.

Speaker 3 (00:58):
Absolutely and this is was folding together a New Zealand's
feature film and TV smaller screen industries for a nice
celebration on awards. Some fifty something awards handed out in
the night, which worked like clockwork if you don't let
every single person do a speech, which was really really great.
But it was a chance to celebrate a lot of

(01:19):
great screen achievements, not least of which was the fantastic
and sadly final film of Lee Tomahordy The Convert, which
won five major awards during the night, including Best Director,
which was one of the most moving moments I've experienced
it in awards. Actually, Toma Horry's long time producing partner,

(01:40):
Robin Skulls, accepted the award on his behalf. It was
a real chance to honor someone whose works left a
huge legacy, And as Robin revealed from the stage, Lee
learned of this one before he passed away, so it
was actually a really really special thing for him to
know that this was happening. Also, in the Standing Ovation

(02:01):
Brings Test to Your Eyes Department, Sir Sam Neil was
honored with the Screen Legend Award, delivered a suitably sam
Neil script, preceded by a great montage. Actually, you know,
like his work speaks for itself. There's like fifty three
years of fantastic screen appearances. But as Oscar kitely mentioned
in his introduction he singled out Sam Neil's turned to

(02:24):
camera and that was featured in the montage quite from
He's actually really good at facing away from the camera
and doing a very dramatic turnback, somewhat of a signature
move elsewhere in the night Cafe Tan, who won the
for Best Feature Film Overall and Best Original Score. Tina
was nominated in a bunch of categories really significantly only

(02:44):
sort of took home Best Actress categories for leading and
supporting the rule of Genny Penn. The fantastic James Ashcroft
film sitt In a Retirement Home won a couple of
acting categories. I won an acting category and also for
Best Script. John Lithgow sent an awesome video speech which
he acknowledged the whole thing would have been pointless he

(03:06):
didn't win the award and kind of just went on
a big extemper rising a rambling chat, which is great
and other deserving winners on the night included Antonio preble
Koda Forrester, Stephen Lovett, and Peter Hambleton. Scotty Morrison was
the screen Personality of the Year voted by the public,
and that was a real another real heartwarming moment. So

(03:27):
I got on all the winners lots of good stuff
to check out, and I think have a good peruse
down the winners list somewhere. It's a good reminder of
some stuff you might have missed her in the year.

Speaker 2 (03:35):
Absolutely good suggestion. Now Apple Plus has a new show
out which is causing a few ways.

Speaker 3 (03:42):
Indeed, this is a show called Pluribus. It's from Vince Gilligan,
who's the fellow behind Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul.
Also in Vince Gilligan's past is a big run on
The X Files, which kind of makes more sense with
this because this is a sci fi show. It's set
in Albuquerque in New Mexico and sort of spans worldwide,
so it looks a bit like Breaking Bad and Better
Call Saul stars Rea Seahorn, who's a fantastic female lead

(04:04):
from Better Call Saul, but definitely or good wacky premise.
There's a few episodes out I think sort of setting
up the show isn't too spoilery at this point, but
although we won't go into the details so much, essentially
a signal has been picked up from out of space.
It turns out to be a virus, so scientists make
it and start testing on animals to see what happens,
and it spreads throughout humanity and sort of pulls us

(04:26):
all together into this harmonious hive mind. One way of
thinking is that that's invasion of the body snatches, and
it's bad, but actually everything seems quite good. Although Ria
Seehorn's character is one of just a handful of people
that aren't part of it, and to them it's to her,
it's an alien invasion. It's terrible. This is kind of
it's a black comedy to the show and pos us

(04:47):
some questions about individualism versus collectivism. I think it's going
to be a really really interesting run. One of the
things that connects it, I think to Better Care Soil
and Breaking Bad is that at times those shows had
great sequences that kind of were predicated on what would
happen if you had sort of unlimited resources and could
do kind of big crazy things. And here all the
resources of the world are at the disposal of kind

(05:09):
of just these couple of humans that are kicking around.
So you could fly from one side of the globe
to the other on air Force one if you ask nicely,
if you if you ask your new Harmonious overlords for
a hand grenade, one will turn up. If the supermarket's empty,
they will restock it for you. So there's kind of
this really nice visual, big picture of stuff going on.
This is probably Apple TV's new severance, I guess is

(05:29):
the kind of comparison. Not many Apple TV shows really
crossover to the public. I don't think so this will
be in that.

Speaker 2 (05:36):
I think a lot of people are going to be
talking about this one. It's going to just it's going
to be a slow yeah, and.

Speaker 3 (05:40):
It kind of joint slow horses in that regard as well,
I guess.

Speaker 2 (05:43):
Thank you so much, Steve, appreciate it.

Speaker 1 (05:46):
For more from the Sunday session with Francesca Rudkin, listen
live to News Talks it'd be from nine am Sunday,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.