DEGANZ Watch List: Features & Unscripted & Shorts, Oh My!

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Here’s the latest work from DEGANZ members! There are features, unscripted projects, and a short film in the mix this time.

Feature film Kōkā, edited by DEGANZ members Te Rurehe Paki, is out in local cinemas following its Matariki weekend premiere.

Also in the feature space, the trailer for Pike River offers the first glimpse into the highly anticipated film directed by Robert Sarkies (DEGANZ) and edited by Peter Roberts (DEGANZ).

Fellow member James Fink-Jensen‘s short film The Balloon is also available to watch on his production company’s Vimeo.

In the factual space, check out Mind Menders, co-directed by Peter Day (DEGANZ), and The Casketeers: Life and Death Around the Globe with DEGANZ member Vea Mafile’o as Field Director.

 

Kōkā

Feature Film

Editor: Te Rurehe Paki

Māori elder Hamo and local delinquent Jo form an unlikely bond on a road trip. As they confront past traumas and each face their demons, their shared path becomes a journey of healing, community and reconciliation.

 

Mind Menders

Documentary

Co-Director: Peter Day

In this two-part documentary, Sonia Gray – a long-time advocate for normalising conversation around mental health who has bravely shared her own struggles with anxiety – goes on a mind-altering journey to find out if psychedelics could be the answer to New Zealand’s on-going mental health and addiction crisis.

 

Pike River – Official Trailer

Feature Film Trailer

The first peak into this high anticipated local feature film is out!

Pike River, directed by DEGANZ member Robert Sarkies and edited by fellow member Peter Roberts, starring Melanie Lynskey and Robyn Malcom, follows two women who lose their loved ones in the 2010 Pike River Mine explosion and become leading voices in the families’ fight for truth and accountability.

 

The Balloon

Short Film

Writer, Director and Editor: James Fink-Jensen

On her birthday, an earnest, young girl discovers unexpected solace when her mother seemingly fails to make any plans.

 

The Casketeers: Life and Death Around the Globe

Factual Series

Field Director: Vea Mafile’o

Beloved funeral directors, husband-and-wife team Francis and Kaiora Tipene, embark on a new travel odyssey, witnessing life and death traditions from Tonga, Japan, India and more.

 

Last updated on 26 June 2025

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Time to Boost ‘Takahoa’

DEGANZ member Maddison Grigg is crowdfunding on Boosted for Takahoa,  a new coming-of-age YouTube mini-series.

The Takahoa team has three days left to hit their goal of $35,000 and already has the the backing of 197 donors. Funds raised will go towards production, cast and crew fees, locations, marketing, and post-production.

The five-part series follows the lives of five childhood friends navigating love, family drama, and self-discovery as they transition into adulthood in Auckland, New Zealand. It explores themes of identity, culture, and belonging, showcasing the complexities and triumphs of young people finding their way in the world.

You can find out more and support the production on their Boosted page.

Last updated on 25 June 2025

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Cannes… One Mountain Too High

View from the Top banner

The Cannes film festival is over for another year. And it’s another year where no New Zealand film got into Official Competition, Critics Week, Director’s Fortnight, or the short film competition.

The last NZ feature in Cannes was Cristine Jeff’s Rain 24 years ago, in 2001. Zia Mandviwalla’s Night Shift was the last short film in competition at Cannes in 2012.

Looking across the ditch to Australia, we can see that they have continuing success at Cannes with features. From 2001 – 2025 according to Screen Australia, the Aussies had 22 feature films at Cannes in either Official Competition, Critic’s Week or Director’s Fortnight. On the shorts side, they have been less successful with only 3 shorts chosen since 2012.

Of those 22 features according to IMDB Pro/Box Office Mojo numbers, it seems that for Australian theatrical:

  • 6 did not get a release
  • 3 earned less than NZ$500k
  • 2 earned less than NZ$1 mil.
  • 2 earned between NZ$1 – 2 mil.
  • 1 earned $2 – 3 mil.
  • 2 earned $3 – 4 mil.
  • 3 earned between NZ$4 – 5 mil.
  • 2 earned $6 – 8 mil.
  • 1 film releasing in June 2025 has no B.O. yet

It’s safe to say that those that did not get a release were strong arthouse films, while a good number of those with high box office returns were horror/thriller, with the others of various genres from drama to indigenous. So a pretty wide spread of films that achieved from no Australian box office success to great results.

A quick scan of two other countries with similar populations to NZ—Denmark and Ireland—reveals that Denmark has had five features in competition at Cannes since 2001, while Ireland has had six.

If we look more closely at the NZ films that have been selected at Cannes we see:

1982 The Scarecrow, Sam Pillsbury, Directors’ Fortnight

1984 Vigil, Vincent Ward, Official Competition

1987 Ngāti, Barry Barclay, International Critics’ Week

1988 The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey, Vincent Ward, Official Competition

1993 The Piano, Jane Campion, Official Competition

1998 Memory & Desire, Niki Caro, International Critics’ Week

2001 Rain, Christine Jeffs, Directors’ Fortnight

 

So why don’t NZ features get into Cannes anymore?

Do we lack the auteur directorial talent? Is NZFC too risk averse when it comes to script development? Does a market and cast-driven approach spoil our chances? Are we lacking in boldness and originality? Are our films not good enough on an international filmmaking level?

It would seem that it’s a combination of a number of these things, according to a couple of very experienced film industry practitioners whose opinions I value.

We certainly are very capable at climbing mountains in this country. It just seems that the cinematic peak of Cannes proves difficult to scale for NZ films except for the very few, now quite some time ago.

But we live in hope.

 

Tui Ruwhiu
Executive Director

Last updated on 18 June 2025

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Milligan’s Editing for Kid Cudi’s ‘Neverland’ Premiered at Tribeca

DEGANZ member Scott Milligan edited Kid Cudi’s latest music video, Neverland. The musical short accompanies the American rapper’s latest single and premiered at Tribeca Film Festival on 7 June under the Shorts Programme’s Music Videos: Playlist category.

Directed by Ti West and produced by Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions, the 11 minute music video tells the story of a 200 year old vampire who takes his newly initiated love on her first feed. Alongside Kid Cudi, the music video features horror acting icons Kiernan Shipka (Longlegs, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina), Brittany Snow (X), Haley Joel Osment (The Sixth Sense, Blink Twice, Tusk), Cary Elwes (Saw), and Brandon Scott (Descendent).

The music video continued Scott’s working relationship with Ti West, having been part of the editorial team for West’s X, Pearl, and MaXXXine, all of which had post-production work done in Aotearoa.

Congratulations to Scott and the team on the premiere! We look forward to watching Neverland when it releases to wider audiences.

 

Last updated on 12 June 2025

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Lee’s ‘Chrysanthemum’ Blooms at Palm Springs ShortFest

Incubator alum Jolin Lee‘s short film Chrysanthemum is having its world premiere at the Palm Springs International ShortFest on 27 June. In addition to writing and directing the film, Jolin co-edited it with fellow DEGANZ member Steven Chow.

The film follows an anguished gardener who develops an unhealthy relationship with a chrysanthemum plant when her child mysteriously vanishes in a garden centre. It will screen in the Beneath the Surface programme, a collection of shorts that “simmer [and] push towards revelation, rupture, or release.”

Palm Spring’s ShortFest is one of the largest showcases of short-form cinema in North America. The seven-day festival is Academy Award, BAFTA, and GOYA-qualifying. It also acts as a hub for filmmakers and industry professionals from around the world to connect, learn, and grow.

Congratulations to Jolin, Steven, and all involved on the prestigious selection!

 

Last updated on 12 June 2025

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