There’s no doubt television and movie making in Aotearoa is booming. 

Movies like Avatar: The Way of Water; M3GAN; One of Us is Lying; Pearl; Lord of the Rings; Prehistoric Planet; Under the Vines, and even Power Ranges (just to name a few) were all filmed here last year.

Filmmaking in New Zealand has become a multi-million-dollar industry. Overseas production companies are packing their bags and heading down under in droves to film in places like Queenstown, Wanaka, Christchurch, Kaikoura, and Whakatane. 

With more and more movies and high-end TV series being filmed in our part of the world, an overhaul of the industry is timely. 

Historically, contractors have not been afforded the same rights and protections as employees, but this is all about to change with the introduction of the new Screen Industry Workers Act 2022.

The new rules will give screen production workers the right to collectively bargain for minimum entitlements just like employees. 

This blurs the lines between the usual distinction of employee vs independent contractor as contractors can now take part in the collective bargaining aspect of the employment relations framework. 

It’s very close to home with the Silverlight Studios film development progressing in Wanaka, so we’ll be waiting to see how this all plays out.