Land
New Zealand is made up of two main islands, the North Island and the South Island, and numerous smaller offshore islands.
The total area is 268,680 sq. km (103,740 sq. miles). It is approximately two-thirds the size of California, and is equivalent in size to Japan, Colorado or Great Britain.
The coastline is 15,135 km (9,405 miles).
New Zealand’s scenery is highly accessible to productions of all sizes. However, New Zealanders place a high value on their natural environment for both cultural and economic reasons. As a result there are protocols in place for the permission and use of both public and private land. These have been designed to provide straightforward and clear guidelines to anyone filming in New Zealand.
Maori Land
Maori were the original inhabitants, tangata whenua (people of the land), of Aotearoa (New Zealand) over 1000 years ago.
Many locations throughout New Zealand – but particularly in rural and coastal areas – may be owned by Maori, or may have an important cultural value to Maori groups. Use of this land will require consultation with them.
Papatuanuku (Earth Mother) is the Maori word to describe the Earth. The term describes the value Maori attribute to land and the relationship it has to their spiritual well-being.
Historically, land was not held individually by Maori, but by the hapu (subtribe) or iwi (tribe), and a tribe's well-being was associated with their land.
The Treaty of Waitangi recognises Maori as the tangata whenua (people of the land) and guarantees Maori rangatiratanga (sovereignty) over their lands and taonga (cultural treasures).
Maori regard some sites as being waahi tapu (special places) and these include mountains (maunga), rivers (awa), burial grounds (urupa) and meeting grounds (marae).
The concept that land is a taonga (treasure) constitutes the principle upon which Maori protocols and guidelines for filming are based.
It is this background that should provide the basis of an understanding of the concept of Maori land and the respect that Maori land should be shown.
Consultation with local iwi is recommended before filming in New Zealand. A general guideline about Maori filming protocols is given below.
Ngai Tahu (the Maori tribe of the southern islands of New Zealand) have published guidelines for filming within their own rohe (tribal region).
* These guidelines have been prepared by Nga Aho Whakaari – Maori in Film & Video Inc., using the guidelines jointly prepared by Ngai Tahu and the Screen Production and Development Association (SPADA).
Contact details for Iwi can be obtained from:
Te Puni Kokiri (Ministry of Maori Development) Head Office
+64 4 922 6000
www.tpk.govt.nz
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Conservation and Heritage Parks
New Zealand has 13 national parks and more than five million hectares – that's about a third of New Zealand's land mass – protected in parks and reserves. These lands contain a huge variety of landscapes and vegetation, and are recognised worldwide for their beauty. They also contain some of New Zealand's most popular and iconic filming locations.
The range of scenery in the national parks is unique – from the mangrove-fringed tidal inlets of Northland to the snow capped volcanoes of the Central Plateau, from the forests of the Urewera to the majestic fiords, glaciers and mountains of the south. Plants and animals found nowhere else on earth can be found here.
The Department of Conservation (DOC) is the guardian of New Zealand's conservation estate and administers its national parks. If you want to film in an area managed by the Department of Conservation, you need to apply for a concession.
Concessions are governed by the Code of Practice: Filming on Public Conservation Lands.
The Code's stated purpose is to provide film crews with guidance and assistance to help them to conduct filming activities on public conservation lands in such a way that the values of the places where they film will be protected. The Code outlines the reasons why film images of Conservation Lands are controlled in this way. Chiefly it draws attention to the fact that inappropriate use of images of specific places can cause negative impacts, both for managers of those places and for iwi. Depicting activities that are not permitted or encouraged in certain places can, for example, create an erroneous impression in the minds of the public that such activities are acceptable. Serious offence to iwi can also be caused by inappropriate use of images of places or things of significant cultural value.
Code of Practice: Filming on Public Conservation Lands 2005 (PDF, 132.89KB)
After familiarising yourself with the Code, consent forms and other relevant material such as information about fees can be found on DOC’s website under the title Commercial Filming on Public Conservation Lands.
Film crews should familiarise themselves with this process and follow the guidance when applying for their DOC concession. In most cases the application is best lodged at the DOC office nearest the primary location that is to be used.
National parks and conservation lands help make New Zealand a special filming destination. We encourage you to work closely with DOC on your filming projects and to treat the land with respect. That way our treasured locations can continue to be appreciated worldwide through the moving image.
