Kiwi film-maker Regan Hall's debut feature Fast Girls - a Bend It Like Beckham-style tale about a female sprint relay team instead of football - opens in cinemas in Britain this week timed to ride the Olympic hype.
Hall, who moved to London in 2000 after working as a film editor in Wellington, has made his name in commercials for top brands ranging from Dolce & Gabbana to Revlon.
However, in the late 2000s he shot his debut short film 3 Hours, about an Iraqi lad named Akram who is set on revenge after militants murder his young brother.
Shot in Jordan, with a cast made up of Iraqi refugees, Hall self-financed the project before attracting outside backing, including from the team behind Oscar-winning film The Hurt Locker.
3 Hours then caught the attention of Fast Girls producer Damian Jones (The Iron Lady, The History Boys) who asked Hall on board to direct.