Bridging Cultures in Film

Winter is approaching again and I am back from Taiwan and China where I spent six months working on a feature film. The main shoot was in Wuxi, which is very cold so I am on my third Winter in a row. It is fantastic if you are skiing or snowboarding, but less so if you are working on a film in cold studios. Now that LED’s are the fashionable light source, the Dino or Spacelight heaters are no longer keeping us warm.

This was my second project in China and was a Chinese film for the Chinese market. The Production Company was Chinese, so we shot it the Chinese way. It is a different world - perhaps more similar to our industry in the late 70’s and early 80’s, but on a vast scale. The Chinese Film Industry made 772 films in 2016.

Health and Safety and the terms and conditions for the crew are at early stages of development. But they have a long way to go to be in the same territory as our industry, or those of Australia, USA, UK and Europe. The attitude is different - from the Producers through to the crews who seem to accept the conditions they work under as acceptable. Although, now some Chinese crew members work on other international productions, and they did not feel these conditions were acceptable.

There is a significant push within New Zealand to create projects with China. This is great as it is a huge market of film goers, who love the cinema and the moving image. But the difference in screen cultures needs to be managed. Chinese Producers need to understand how the New Zealand Screen Industry works - especially with the Health and Safety laws that came in last year. New Zealand Screen Contractors must still work within these laws on jobs in New Zealand, even though it may be a Chinese Production company that is controlling the Production. New Zealand Producers need to understand the Chinese screen culture equally as well when they do a co-production, as there is significant room for misunderstanding and confusion. Understanding the screen culture in each country is vital to move forward in a successful way.

I returned from my six-month project to the Government announcing that there was 303.9 million dollars being given to the Film Industry in the May budget. Exciting - but what does that mean? Are we going to make big budget New Zealand movies telling our own stories?

It is an acknowledgement that the Film Industry is providing a significant contribution to New Zealand, and that the industry needs to be supported. The support is in the form of the allocation of money for the Incentive Schemes that underpin the viability of the industry to attract international projects, and for Local Producers to attract finance to fund their projects.

It is also an acknowledgement that the Film Industry has to have Incentive Schemes to be a functioning industry, and the return on the investment benefits a significant number of industries and workers within the country.

As it is election year, it appears that most parties recognise the importance of the Arts. So there is hope that we will have support from whoever becomes the new Government.

We are working hard to make the Guild better able to meet the challenges that will face the Screen Industry in the coming years. There are significant changes that the Guild will undertake in the coming months, and the membership needs to be part of these changes. As part of this year’s AGM we will introduce a series of motions to update the constitution as part of the changes. These motions will be included in the notification of the AGM so you can consider these proposals. As a member you can vote at the AGM or send in a proxy vote. All this will be detailed in the AGM notification.

We are looking to call the AGM in mid-September and I will stand again as President. If I am elected, I intend 2017/2018 to be my last year as President. It will be time for someone else to consider this role, so that is plenty of notice for candidates to come forward.

Participation in the Guild is crucial if we are to be an effective organisation. The Guild provides a voice in our industry. In a democratic country it is vital - our right and our responsibility to contribute to that voice.

We would like to see you participate, voice your opinion and contribute to the vision of how this industry should be shaped for the future. Become a member who contributes to the Guild, and moves the industry forward.