NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather forecasts

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Budget 2025
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
    • Cooking the Books
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Entertainment

Auckland Daze: Online bid for stardom

NZ Herald
19 Oct, 2011 06:00 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Natalie Medlock and Millen Baird. Photo / Supplied

Natalie Medlock and Millen Baird. Photo / Supplied

A series about four guys desperate to make it big in local entertainment is heading to a screen near you - on the web. Lydia Jenkin reports.

The line between television and real life is going to become pretty blurry with the arrival of new digital series Auckland Daze on October 27.

TVNZ's latest digital initiative is an online-only show which will be presented every Thursday in six 20 minute episodes, screening on TVNZ's OnDemand website, and on the Auckland Daze Facebook page. At a basic level it's a similar concept to Reservoir Hill, TVNZ's award-winning digital show which allowed viewers to text in and suggest what the main character should do. However, Auckland Daze is aimed at a different audience (18-35 year olds) and rooted in the Auckland entertainment industry.

Co-created, produced and directed by actor Kiel McNaughton (Shortland Street), his wife (also a producer) Kerry Warkia, and writer/actor/director Millen Baird (The Millen Baird Show), it stemmed from an idea Baird had after watching American faux-reality show The Hills.

"I couldn't figure out why I was so riveted to the material, and I thought, what would that show be like in Auckland. I started throwing some ideas around with [entertainer Jimmy James], and then I took the idea to Kiel, and we decided to flesh it out, so we shot a 12-minute pilot."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

They eventually received funding through the NZ On Air digital media partnership, and got TVNZ on board.

Rather than follow four females a la The Hills, they've opted to feature four males working in Auckland showbiz, with the guys effectively playing exaggerated versions of themselves.

Though he's never actually done any modelling, Baird plays a 35-year-old male model.

"He's a bit of a useless mummy's boy, and the relationship between him and his mum (played by Jennifer Ward-Lealand) is a bit weird. We live in a mansion in Parnell, and she's a celebrity real estate agent.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

And then we've got little Jimmy James, who's a dwarf entertainer, who can't get a job on The Hobbit because of his drinking. Then there's Fasitua Amosa, who's an unfunny comedian, always trying out his material on the guys."

The fourth member of their gang is Glen Levy, who's an aggro stuntman/ninja.

"He actually is a ninja - National Geographic profiled him as being one of the 20 deadliest men in the world. But he's got intimacy problems, and he actually loves older women, i.e. my mum. Which creates a bit of tension between the two of us down the line."

If that's all sounding a little male-dominated, don't fret, there are a selection of girlfriends, female admirers and co-workers who flesh out the awkward reality of the world these guys inhabit.

Discover more

Opinion

Best comedies of 2012

05 Dec 08:39 PM

"I guess the thing is that they're all trying to find fame in Auckland," McNaughton laughs.

They're writing from what they know, Baird acknowledging that much of the material is an extension of his own experience.

"I've got a lot of horror stories about the industry."

Much of the show will be heavily improvised, the aim being to feel unrehearsed, with an emphasis on comedy and parody, and there will be an absolute truckload of cameo performances. Think something like a cross between Wanna Ben, The Jono Project, SuperCity and The Jaquie Brown Diaries for the tone it will take.

Shot during each weekend, the episodes will be edited between Monday and Wednesday before going "live" on Thursdays. This quick turnaround gives viewers a chance to participate in the direction the show takes via the Facebook page.

"We do have an arc for the characters, but we really want to encourage viewer interactivity, because we think there's a lot of fun to be had with that" McNaughton explains. "If the viewers really get into it, then they could feed directly into what the characters do. I think we'll start off trying to get viewers involved by chucking in particular lines [that they suggest] here and there, but if we find that viewers really want to say, 'oh Millen should do this, and he shouldn't be seeing that girl' and so on, then who knows?"

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

LOWDOWN

What: Auckland Daze digital series

When and where: Begins screening on Thursday October 27 at www.tvnz.co.nz/auckland-daze and www.facebook.com/aucklanddaze

-TimeOut

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Entertainment

Entertainment

'Extremely difficult to perform': Miley Cyrus opens up on health battle

22 May 08:16 AM
Entertainment

Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning | trailer

New Zealand

'Born with it': How Jacob Bryant became a sought-after cinematographer

22 May 05:00 AM

Sponsored: How much is too much?

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Entertainment

'Extremely difficult to perform': Miley Cyrus opens up on health battle

'Extremely difficult to perform': Miley Cyrus opens up on health battle

22 May 08:16 AM

The star has a large polyp on her vocal cord, which affects her voice.

Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning | trailer

Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning | trailer

'Born with it': How Jacob Bryant became a sought-after cinematographer

'Born with it': How Jacob Bryant became a sought-after cinematographer

22 May 05:00 AM
Premium
Karl Puschmann - Tom Cruise, Mission: Impossible and the age of the Bladderbuster

Karl Puschmann - Tom Cruise, Mission: Impossible and the age of the Bladderbuster

22 May 05:00 AM
Sponsored: Cosy up to colour all year
sponsored

Sponsored: Cosy up to colour all year

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP