Wetini Mitai-Ngatai welcomes the students. Photo /Andrew Warner
Wetini Mitai-Ngatai welcomes the students. Photo /Andrew Warner
Rotorua film and television production hopefuls have been given a big foot in the door with a new course led by some of the industry's best allowing them to earn while they learn.
Tohea, an 18-week course funded by the Ministry of Social Development and Provincial Growth Fund, officially startedyesterday following a pōhiri at the course's base at the Copthorne Hotel.
A pōhiri for the Tohea students drops the hōngi for a fist pump. Photo / Andrew Warner
It sees 20 previously out-of-work young people aged between 18 and 28 trained for six weeks as part of pre-internship training in the basics of behind the scenes production of film and television.
Those students will then go on to work for 12 weeks as apprentices on the set of the recently announced $5.6 million action-thriller Vegas, which is to be filmed in Rotorua this year.
Wetini Mitai-Ngatai welcomes the students. Photo /Andrew Warner
The students will work in areas of filming, lighting, sound, technical and creative to help produce the series for Auckland-based television powerhouse Greenstone TV.
Those behind the course are Waiariki Film Studios GP Limited, a partnership between Film Bay of Plenty and Steambox Films Rotorua.
It is made up of familiar and experienced faces in the film and television industry, including Lara Northcroft, Piripi Curtis and Mike Jonathan.
Sir Toby Curtis addresses the students. Photo / Andrew Warner
The ministry is providing $78,276 for the six-week pre-employment training course and the Provincial Growth Fund's Te Ara Mahi has allocated $75,000 for the subsequent 12-week paid internship.
Northcroft said the 20 students were selected from about 35 applicants.
"We were looking for people who are passionate about the industry and film making."
She said all applicants had to be currently out of work and given the impacts of Covid-19, there were several excellent applicants, including those from the tourism and visitor industries.
"We have also had got a legal secretary and an Air New Zealand air hostess. Some have got experience and others have got transferable skills."
She said the purpose was to build a workforce so that when films came to New Zealand, Rotorua was primed and ready with skilled operators.
Eilis Casey has gone from working in a law firm to being on the Tohea course to learn about a new career in film and television. Photo / Andrew Warner
Eilis Casey is one of the students who took the opportunity after losing her job at a local legal firm as a result of Covid-19.
"It's pretty different and something that doesn't come along all the time."
Casey said her father worked for the BBC in England doing artwork and that was an area of the industry she would also like to explore.
Krishna Smith will be one of the course leaders. Photo / Andrew Warner
Krishna Smith, one of the course leaders, told the students he was excited.
"We have got an intensive four to six weeks ahead and I hope you're ready to rock and roll."
Ministry regional commissioner Mike Bryant said the beauty of the course was it potentially had up to four years' work with the Vegas series.
"They have the opportunity to leverage off that. Many of the participants have the opportunity to use that as a real-life introduction to the industry."
Greenstone TV Vegas production manager Andrew Marshall said it was exciting for Rotorua.
"There is so much talent here."
About Vegas
Among those behind the Vegas TV series are (from left) Piripi Curtis, Harriet Crampton, Lara Northcroft and Michael Bennett. Photo / Supplied
Vegas will be produced by Greenstone TV, in collaboration with the Rotorua-based Steambox Film Collective and award-winning writer Michael Te Arawa Bennett and his 10,000 Company.
The project, for TVNZ2, is made possible with support from NZ on Air.
Set in an imaginary world that closely resembles New Zealand in 2020, Vegas is an action thriller about a young, untested leader who wants to free his people from the curse of methamphetamine but finds he can't do it on his own.
The story is based on the novel Inside the Black Horse, by Ray Berard.
It's expected the series will inject several million dollars to the local economy.
