“It’s been an incredible journey working with some amazing storytellers,” he said in his launch speech in Sydney, going on to point out Australia-only shows that tell Australian stories. “We’ve produced shows like ‘Boy Swallows Universe,’ ‘Heartbreak High,’ ‘True Spirit,’ ‘Love is in the Air,’ and ‘The Stranger,'” in an interview with industry publication C21. , Netflix ANZ Content Director Kueh Minh Lu added: “We’re trying to define what Australian content means to us on the Netflix service, and first of all, what it means to Australian viewers.”
That’s not to say New Zealand wasn’t mentioned at all during Netflix ANZ’s coverage. When asked about attracting international productions and co-productions to Australia and New Zealand, Ming Lu said: “There’s certainly a lot of talent and filmmakers and studios that want to bring their work to Australia, because the people here, not just in New Zealand, but in our country, are amazing. Because the infrastructure and talent there is also incredible. Because it’s great” (emphasis added).
Eileen Gardiner, president of local film producers’ union Spada NZ, described the comments as “rubbing salt in the wound” at a time when our film industry is already hurting. “Netflix refers to its Australian office as ‘Netflix Australia New Zealand’, except to mention that the staff is of high quality and that New Zealand is a good place for international people to film.” That part is completely ignored,” she said. SPADA press release this morning. “New Zealand is more than just a service center for international manufacturing.”
Netflix shoots several major international productions in New Zealand, such as Sweet Tooth. Photo/Kirsty Griffin, Netflix
Since arriving in New Zealand 10 years ago, Netflix has released Sweet Tooth (set in post-apocalyptic America), Cowboy Bebop (set across the solar system in 2071) and The Royal Treatment. (Set in post-apocalyptic America), several large-scale international productions have been filmed in New Zealand. In the fictional Lavanya). The sci-fi thriller A War Machine is currently filming in New Zealand until the end of the month with troops from Australia, and an adaptation of John Steinbeck’s East of Eden is currently filming here with Florence Pugh. , which captures “the dark side of the California dream.” ” Beyond the motu.
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“We don’t want to prevent international production companies from using New Zealand as a filming location, because that would be great for growing that part of our industry,” Mr Gardiner said. . “But we also don’t want to send a message to the world that New Zealand only exists that way.” She added that only three Netflix titles were truly locally co-produced. “The Power of the Dog,” “The Legend of Monkey,” and “Dark Tourist,” which feature leading local creatives Jane Campion, Gerald Johnston and David Faria, respectively, are clearly not new works. New Zealand story.
“When Netflix opened an office in Australia and named it Netflix ANZ, we thought everything might change. We thought they wanted some of the ‘NZ’ part. I expected there to be,” she said. “However, there was no sign of any commission from New Zealand, no easy means of communication, no special effort to invite us to the tent. It’s like they’re being ignored, which is really frustrating for the producers.”
Greenstone TV CEO Rachel Antony agrees that Netflix’s ‘ANZ’ will only add insult to injury. Photo / Provided to Spinoff
Greenstone TV CEO Rachel Antony, who has worked in television in Aotearoa for nearly 30 years, agrees that Netflix’s ‘ANZ’ only adds insult to injury. “It’s really heartbreaking because as a New Zealand producer, we’re already out in the world and working hard to invest internationally in an incredibly difficult market,” she told The Spinoff. “I feel like these big international streamers care so little that they can’t even consider that they don’t treat us like a service economy.”
Anthony added that the responsibility for ensuring our local stories are told does not lie with Netflix, Disney, Apple TV or Prime Video. “The reality is that streamers are doing exactly what they’re supposed to be doing, which is none of it,” she said. “We don’t have the quota for them to make local content, so they’re not distributing to small markets when they don’t need to be.” Across the chasm, Australia will become the leading overseas streamer in 2023. has introduced legislation that would require up to 20% of Australia’s revenue to be spent on local productions.
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“Successive governments have completely underestimated the impact of underregulation,” Antony said. “So now that many countries have screen division quotas, we are not working on a level playing field…It is like one team playing in a stadium with full equipment; It’s like we’re standing on the edge” on a cliff, barefoot. ”
A selection of ‘New Zealand’ content on Netflix. Photo / Spin-off
The local industry is currently lobbying the government to impose a surcharge on large banners and regulate them instead of quotas. Because, as Gardiner explained, they “completely broke the model” for making television in this country. “They’re taking huge amounts of viewers away from free-to-air television and they’re doing it here with no accountability,” she said. “And this year, we’re at a critical moment as the advertising dollars that were paying so much of local TV have fallen off a cliff.”
Mr Gardiner said this year alone TVNZ had cut its local content budget by $30 million and Three by $20 million. “That means we’ve immediately raised $50 million from our local storytelling, which is pretty devastating.” Spada’s preferred options include Netflix, Disney, Amazon and Apple. However, a percentage of New Zealand profits will be repaid to New Zealand’s film funding agency. “All we’re saying is, if you want to be part of our screen ecosystem, please contribute here,” she said.
Mr Antony added that this was not just about streamers, but how New Zealand had “ceded all the power” to big tech companies such as Meta and Google. “I feel like this government wants to run New Zealand like an effective business. I run a business too, and if we as taxpayers are shareholders in Aotearoa New Zealand. , this government, and many successive governments, have really let our business get ripped off in the face of streamers, especially Meta and Facebook.”
Netflix ANZ declined to comment for this story and it could be up to two years before we know if there are any moves to regulate the streamer, but Mr Gardiner said this would be a “devastating” time for the local industry. He said there was still light. . “What’s really bright at the moment is how many great local shows are showing around the world,” she said, adding that “Brokenwood Mysteries,” “Under the Vines,” ” Creamery,” “A Remarkable Place to Die,” and the international success of “A Remarkable Place to Die.” Escape from Utopia.
Perhaps it’s time for New Zealand to try its hand at creating its own territory? “Of course,” says Anthony. “Give the right production and creative teams in New Zealand the kind of budget and support that the Territory has. Of course we can provide that too. We absolutely will deliver.”
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