Six-time Emmy Award-winning New Zealander Bob Parr this week called on the Government to make a strategic investment in the industry to enable it to become self-sufficient, rather than ''always waiting for the next production from overseas''.
Parr, a former producer of CBS television show The Amazing Race and now a safety and security consultant for international television productions, said the Government should fund 30 $10 million films over the next five years.
The funding injection would enable the industry to transform itself into a ''centre of international production excellence'', complete with film studios and the world's best international talent living here, he said.
However, after tweaking its film grants system last April, the Government already offers cash incentives to medium- to large-budget film productions, both domestic and international, to film in New Zealand.
Ministry for Culture and Heritage communications manager Tony Wallace said a 40% grant was now available for domestic productions, and that would ''continue to be the Government's approach to developing the domestic screen production industry''.
The Government had spent $51 million on incentives for domestic film productions in the past five years through its now defunct Screen Production Incentive Fund.
It had taken two further steps in the past six months to develop the domestic film production industry, Mr Wallace said.
A Screen Advisory Board was appointed last June to help the industry ''create the skills and connections to generate their own intellectual property, compete internationally and attract overseas finance''.
Its members were James Cameron, Jon Landau, Sir Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Andrew Adamson and Jane Campion.
At the same time, Screen NZ was set up as a ''virtual agency'' to formalise collaboration between the New Zealand Film Commission, Film New Zealand and NZ On Air.
''Screen NZ and the Screen Advisory Board also provide a constructive opportunity for the industry to work together to develop a cohesive view and action plan for its own development.''
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