New Zealand International Film Festival Wellington

Overview

The New Zealand International Film Festival (NZIFF) is New Zealand's most important film festival. Founded in 1969 and held annually in July and August touring across multiple New Zealand cities including Wellington, Auckland, Dunedin, and Christchurch, the festival presents competitive international and New Zealand cinema to one of the world's most cinema-passionate per-capita audience bases.

New Zealand's film culture has achieved extraordinary international recognition through Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings films and their creation of Weta Workshop and Weta Digital as world-class film technology companies. The film festival predates this global recognition, however, having built a tradition of serious engagement with world cinema over five decades.

The festival's Maori program reflects New Zealand's significant Indigenous population and the growing Maori filmmaking tradition, with directors like Taika Waititi achieving global recognition.

Key Sections

• International Competition -- world films
• New Zealand Feature Films -- new New Zealand features
• Maori Film Program -- films by Maori filmmakers
• Documentary Program -- nonfiction features
• Short Film Competition -- New Zealand and international short films

What Filmmakers Should Know

NZIFF accepts open submissions. For New Zealand filmmakers, the touring model means a selection reaches audiences in multiple cities across the country. For Maori filmmakers, the festival provides the most important platform for Indigenous New Zealand cinema.

Major Awards

• Audience Award -- voted across multiple New Zealand cities

Festival History

NZIFF was founded in 1969 and has toured New Zealand's major cities for over five decades.

See Also

For Pacific cinema, see International Film Markets. For Indigenous Maori film, see imagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival.