Navigating a Tough Year: Insights and Optimism for 2024
Hi all, and welcome to NZTECHO#98. I'm really happy with the contributions to this issue. Reading through the pieces that have come in over the last few weeks has reinforced what we all know: that 2023 has been one of the toughest years for a decade or more. You don't need me to reiterate the reasons — there's just been a perfect storm of political ball-dropping and off-shore industrial action, plus a global slowdown against the backdrop of a war in Europe and a world only slowly emerging from a pandemic.
But all of our contributors seem pretty united in asserting that 2024 is looking better, so far. And they're not just being Pollyannas about this. The government has completed its review, the Film Commission and the industry have been heard — and the American strikes can't last forever. By the time you read this, they might well be over.
But we also all need to keep in mind what the actors and writers are striking for. In our next issue, we will be hoping to run a lengthy piece on what AI realistically means to our industry. It is an immensely powerful tool that will change forever how a film can be made. But there are doom-sayers out there who reckon that it is now only a matter of time before nearly all films are written by algorithms and generated entirely within computers, with no live actors or film crew required.
Personally, I reckon that the human need to be told stories has got some filters built in, and that we will always prefer the real thing over a computer-generated facsimile. But a time when CGI is completely indistinguishable from live-action must surely be getting close.
In this issue, you'll find a very welcome letter from new NZFC CEO Annie Murray, a terrific announcement of new studio space and facilities at Whakaata Māori, and an introduction to Ewe Beauty, the South Island's newest and best-smelling truck. As well as all our regional news, pieces from Brendon and Kelly, and a newbie who might be quite familiar to many of you!
Love your work, stay safe, enjoy the read,
GT and Jase.
