The Panthers Tops TV Nods

October 20, 2022 0 Comments

TVNZ drama The Panthers has scored more nominations than any other series in this year’s NZ TV Awards while screen industry veteran Janine Morrell-Gunn has been announced as the 2022 Television Legend.

The awards will be presented on November 24.

Here’s the media release:

NEW ZEALAND TELEVISION AWARDS ANNOUNCES 2022 FINALISTS & TV LEGEND

(Auckland – October 20, 2022) The New Zealand Television Awards are delighted to announce the finalists for 2022, with a total of 116 nominations from more than 500 entries across 39 judged categories.

This year’s nominees represent content aired across local free-to-air networks TVNZ 1 & 2, Three, Prime and Whakaata Māori, as well as New Zealand-made programming on pay TV, digital and streaming platforms including Sky, TVNZ+, Newsroom, The Spinoff, Stuff, TheCoconet.TV and Netflix.

Tavake Limited’s historical Polynesian Panthers drama series The Panthers, which screened on TVNZ 1 and TVNZ+, received the most nominations of any individual production this year with a total of 18 nods across multiple categories, including all three finalists vying for this year’s Screen Auckland Best Director: Drama/Comedy Drama Award (Tom Hern & Vea Mafile’o, Miki Magasiva and Chris Graham & Mario Faumui).

KOHA Productions’ poignant family drama The Pact which streamed on TVNZ+ is up for six awards, including two nominations in the Best Script: Drama Category, alongside previous category winner Pip Hall who’s nominated for Great Southern TV’s TVNZ 1 mystery crime series One Lane Bridge. The Pact, The Panthers and 2020 category winner One Lane Bridge comprise the three finalists in this year’s NZ On Air Best Drama category.

In the news and current affairs categories, Newshub – which was named Best News Coverage in 2019, 2020 and 2021 – has received a total of six nominations in 2022, including two nods in the Best News Coverage category, two in Best Presenter: News & Current Affairs (Newshub Nation’s Oriini Kaipara and AM’s Ryan Bridge) and two in Reporter of the Year (Lisette Reymer and Patrick Gower).

TVNZ news also received six nominations this year, including Best News Coverage for Te Karere and 1News’ Breaking Special on the Parliament Protests, Te Karere is also a finalist in Te Māngai Pāho Best Māori Programme, Q+A host Jack Tame and Te Karere and Marae presenter Scotty Morrison are both nominated for Best Presenter: News & Current Affairs, 1 News’ Barbara Dreaver is a finalist in the Reporter of the Year category and Q+A with Jack Tame is nominated for Best Current Affairs Programme, alongside Newsroom’s Newsroom Investigates and Whakaata Māori’s Te Ao with Moana.

Having won Best Comedy in 2021 and 2020, Series 4 of New Zealand Documentary Board’s TVNZ 2 hit Wellington Paranormal is a 2022 finalist in the category, this time alongside Kevin & Co’s Raised by Refugees for Prime/Neon and Greenstone TV’s Kid Sister for TVNZ+.

In the Factual and Documentary categories, Scottie Douglas Productions’ Ake, Ake, Ake and Black Iris Limited’s Chatham Islanders, which both premiered on Whakaata Māori, are nominated for Best Factual Series, alongside Series 3 of Screentime New Zealand Limited’s I AM for TVNZ 1.

Occasional Productions’ acclaimed documentary A Mild Touch of Cancer and Screentime New Zealand Limited’s Recovery 29 about the Pike River Mine recovery mission, both for Prime, are nominated alongside Disordered, Stuff Circuit’s investigation of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder.

A diverse line-up of original programming concepts comprises the Best Original Reality Series category including Pango Productions’ The Ex Best Thing for TVNZ 2, Attitude Pictures’ Down for Love also for TVNZ 2, Screentime’s First Responders and Great Southern TV’s The Casketeers, both for TVNZ 1.

In the performance categories, breakout star Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi is nominated for Best Actor for his role in The Panthers, alongside previous category nominee Craig Hall, again for Head High, and 2021 TV Legend Ian Mune for The Pact. Jordan Mooney and Jordan Vaha’akolo are finalists for Best Supporting Actor, both for The Panthers, alongside Scotty Cotter for his role in Plus6Four Entertainment’s TVNZ+ comedy Kura.

The Best Supporting Actress category finalists are Timmie Cameron for The Pact, Awa Puna for Whakaata Māori’s Ahikāroa and Chelsie Preston Crayford for The Panthers, while the Best Actress line-up includes screen veteran Irene Wood for The Pact, 2020 category winner Miriama McDowell for Head High and Grace Palmer for Good Grief which she also co-wrote.

The New Zealand Television Awards also today reveal Janine Morrell-Gunn (Ngāti Kahungunu) as the 2022 Television Legend. A former TVNZ Executive Producer for Children’s Programming, Janine is now Director of Christchurch-based children’s content production company WhitebaitMedia which she founded 23 years ago along with husband Jason Gunn, establishing purpose-built television production studios and facilities in Ōtautahi.

Janine is a vital part of the local production community and has served on the boards of both Women in Film & Television NZ and SPADA, the screen producers’ guild. She has made an unparalleled contribution to children’s television in Aotearoa over the span of her career, from the 1980s inclusion of te reo in Sesame Street through to original programming that has entertained and educated tamariki over multiple generations, including The Son of a Gunn Show, Bumble, The Erin Simpson Show, The 4.30 Show, 2Kaha, Darwin and Newts, Fanimals, The Feed and the icon that is What Now?.

Janine also demonstrates her ongoing commitment to championing children in other roles including as the Chair of Cholmondeley Children’s Centre and Board member of both Canterbury’s Maia Health Foundation and Uru Manuka Education Trust.

Awards Committee member Irene Gardiner says: “Janine has worked in children’s television in New Zealand for more than 30 years and is our greatest contributor to the genre. She is passionate about making strong and positive content for young New Zealanders, mentoring on and off-screen talent coming through the industry, and she has often represented us at international conferences on the subject. She has been a tireless campaigner for quality children’s programming in Aotearoa and her name is synonymous with children’s television.”

The prestigious TV Legend Award is presented to a television professional, programme or organisation who has made a significant contribution to the television industry in New Zealand over the span of their career. It is a special honour given at the discretion of the New Zealand Television Awards Committee. Previous TV Legend honourees include actor and director Ian Mune (2021), television executive Andrew Shaw (2020), Shortland Street (2019), iconic Māori broadcaster and journalist Tini Molyneux (2018) and veteran producer John Barnett (2017).

Finalists in the publicly voted 2022 Television Personality of the Year category are yet to be announced.

The 2022 New Zealand Television Awards gala will be held on Thursday 24th November at Shed 10 in Auckland. Actor and comedian Kura Forrester will host the event this year.

The 2022 New Zealand Television Awards finalists are:

New Zealand On Air Best DramaThe Pact
KOHA Productions/ TVNZ+

The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

One Lane Bridge
Great Southern Television Limited / TVNZ 1

Best Comedy

Wellington Paranormal – Series 4
Wellington Paranormal
New Zealand Documentary Board / TVNZ 2

Raised by Refugees
Kevin & Co / Prime

Kid Sister
Greenstone TV / TVNZ+

Best Factual Series

Ake, Ake, Ake
Scottie Douglas Productions Ltd / Whakaata Māori

I AM: Series 3
Screentime New Zealand Limited / TVNZ 1

Chatham Islanders
Black Iris Limited / Whakaata Māori

New Zealand On Air Best Documentary

A Mild Touch of Cancer
Occasional Productions / Prime

Stuff Circuit – Disordered
Stuff

Recovery 29
Screentime New Zealand Limited / Prime

Best Original Reality Series

The Ex Best Thing
Pango Productions / TVNZ 2

Down for Love
Attitude Pictures / TVNZ 2

First Responders
Screentime New Zealand Limited / TVNZ 1

The Casketeers
Great Southern Television Limited / TVNZ 1

Best Format Reality Series

MasterChef New Zealand
Screentime New Zealand Limited / Warner Bros. Discovery/Three

Lego Masters NZ
Screentime New Zealand Limited / TVNZ 2

Match Fit – Series 2
Pango Productions / Warner Bros. Discovery/Three

Snack Masters NZ
South Pacific Pictures / TVNZ 2

Best Current Affairs Programme

Q+A with Jack Tame
TVNZ / TVNZ 1

Newsroom Investigates
Newsroom

Te Ao with Moana
Whakaata Māori

New Zealand On Air Best Children’s Programme

Goodbye A.I.
Vinewood Animation / HEIHEI

Tamaiti Tū
Te Noni Ltd / Whakaata Māori

Bird’s Eye View
SweetShop & Green and Studio Local / HEIHEI

Te Māngai Pāho Best Māori Programme

Ake, Ake, Ake
Scottie Douglas Productions Ltd / Whakaata Māori

The Casketeers
Great Southern Television Limited / TVNZ 1

Moana Jackson. Portrait of a Quiet Revolutionary
Tawera / Black Pearl Productions / Whakaata Māori

Te Māngai Pāho Best Reo Māori Programme

Nga Tohu Matariki o te Tau 2022
Whakaata Māori

Te Karere
TVNZ / TVNZ 1

Match Fit
Pango Productions / Warner Bros. Discovery/Three

New Zealand On Air Best Pasifika Programme

Akanuanua
Tikilounge Productions / TheCoconet.TV

The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

All Access: Moana Pasifika
Sky Sport

Best News Coverage

Climate Change & Sea Level Rise
Newshub
Warner Bros. Discovery / Newshub

Te Karere & 1 News Breaking Special – Parliament Protest
1 News
TVNZ / TVNZ 1

Russia Invades Ukraine
Newshub
Warner Bros. Discovery / Newshub

Best Sports Programme

Scratched: Aotearoa’s Lost Sporting Legends
Hex Work Productions / The Spinoff

1-39: The Highlanders Story
Sky Sport

East Coast Rising
Pango Productions / TVNZ 2

Best Live Event Coverage

Super Saturday Vaxathon
Pango Productions / Various

Ngā Tohu Matariki o te Tau 2022 (Matariki Awards 2022)
Whakaata Māori

Celebrate Matariki
Kahawai Productions / Whakaata Māori

Best Entertainment Programme

Stan Walker: Impossible Live
Kura Productions / South Pacific Pictures / TVNZ 2

Semele
N.Z. Opera & Greenstone TV / Sky Arts

Jono & Ben: Good Sports
Take Two Productions / TVNZ 2

Best Director: Documentary/Factual

Johnny Agnew
Young and The Reckless
Two Heads / Re: / TVNZ+

Kathleen Mantel
Chatham Islanders
Black Iris Limited / Whakaata Māori

Chris Graham
Scribe: Return of the Crusader
The Down Low Concept / TVNZ+

Whatanui Flavell
Ake, Ake, Ake
Scottie Douglas Productions Ltd / Whakaata Māori

Screen Auckland Best Director: Drama / Comedy Drama

Tom Hern & Vea Mafile’o
The Panthers, Episode 3
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Miki Magasiva
The Panthers, Episode 1
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Chris Graham & Mario Faumui
The Panthers, Episode 6
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Best Actress

Grace Palmer
Good Grief
Brown Sugar Apple Grunt Productions / TVNZ+

Miriama McDowell
Head High
South Pacific Pictures / Warner Bros. Discovery/Three

Irene Wood
The Pact
KOHA Productions / TVNZ+

Best Supporting Actress

Chelsie Preston Crayford
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Awa Puna
Ahikāroa
Kura Productions / Whakaata Māori

Timmie Cameron
The Pact
KOHA Productions / TVNZ+

Best Actor

Craig Hall
Head High
South Pacific Pictures / Warner Bros. Discovery/Three

Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Ian Mune
The Pact
KOHA Productions / TVNZ+

Best Supporting Actor

Scotty Cotter
Kura
Plus6Four Entertainment / TVNZ+

Jordan Mooney
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Jordan Vaha’akolo
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Reporter of the Year

Lisette Reymer
Newshub Live at 6
Warner Bros. Discovery / Newshub

Patrick Gower
Newshub
Warner Bros. Discovery / Newshub

Barbara Dreaver
1 News
TVNZ / TVNZ 1

Best Presenter: Entertainment

Kanoa Lloyd
Sort Your Life Out NZ
South Pacific Pictures / Warner Bros. Discovery/Three

Nore Martin
Moon Tide Fishing
2BMedia / Whakaata Māori

Tāmati Rimene-Sproat
Hongi To Hāngī: And Everything In Between
Great Southern Television Limited / TVNZ 1

Jono Pryor and Ben Boyce
Jono & Ben: Good Sports
Take Two Productions / TVNZ 2

Best Presenter: News and Current Affairs

Oriini Kaipara
Newshub Nation
Warner Bros. Discovery / Newshub

Jack Tame
Q+A with Jack Tame
TVNZ / TVNZ 1

Ryan Bridge
Newshub & AM
Warner Bros. Discovery / Newshub

Scotty Morrison
Te Karere & Marae
TVNZ & Pango Productions / TVNZ 1

Best Editing: Documentary or Factual

Toby Longbottom
Stuff Circuit
Stuff

Sacha Campbell
Scribe: Return of the Crusader
The Down Low Concept / TVNZ+

Prisca Bouchet, Julie Alp and Annie Goldson
A Mild Touch of Cancer
Occasional Productions / Prime

Best Editing: Drama / Comedy Drama

Margot Francis
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Bryan Shaw
One Lane Bridge
Great Southern Television Limited / TVNZ 1

Sacha Campbell
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Best Camerawork: Documentary or Factual

Timothy Firkin
Waka Huia
Scottie Productions / TVNZ 1

Bevan Crothers
Moko
Velvet Stone Media Ltd / Whakaata Māori

Dominic Fryer
Chatham Islanders
Black Iris Limited / Whakaata Māori

Best Director: Multi Camera

Matt Quin
Rugby League: NZ v Tonga Double Header (Men)
Sky Sport

Mitchell Hawkes
Stan Walker: Impossible Live
Kura Productions / South Pacific Pictures / TVNZ 2

Tobias Jones
Celebrate Matariki
Kahawai Productions / Whakaata Māori

Images & Sound Best Cinematography: Drama / Comedy Drama

Nina Wells
Good Grief: Season 2
Brown Sugar Apple Grunt Productions / TVNZ+

Tim Flower
Kura: Season 2
Plus6Four Entertainment / TVNZ+

Andrew McGeorge
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Best Contribution to a Soundtrack

Tom Miskin, Melanie Graham, Mike Bayliss, Steve Finnigan
Mystic
Libertine Pictures & Slim Film + TV / TVNZ 2

Native Audio
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Gareth Van Niekerk, Brendon Morrow, Steve Finnigan
Albularyo
The Hot House / TVNZ 2 & TVNZ+

Images & Sound Best Original Score

David Long & Stephen Gallagher
Mystic: Series 2
Libertine Pictures & Slim Film + TV / TVNZ 2

Tihema Bennett
Beyond the Veil: Te Kohu (The Mist)
10000 Company / TVNZ 2 & TVNZ+

Jonathan Crayford, P.Smith, choicevaughan & Diggy Dupé
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Best Post Production Design

Paul Lear
Mystic
Libertine Pictures & Slim Film + Television / TVNZ 2

James Gardner
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Alana Cotton
Beyond the Veil: Te Kohu (The Mist)
10,000 Company / TVNZ 2 & TVNZ+

Best Production Design

Gary Mackay – Production Designer, Alistair Kay Supervising Art Director, Anneke Botha – Set Decorator.
Cowboy Bebop
Intergalactic Productions Limited / Netflix

Jane Bucknell
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Melissa Spicer
Wellington Paranormal: Series 4
New Zealand Documentary Board / TVNZ 2

Best Costume Design

Sarah Aldridge
Under The Vines
Libertine Pictures & EQ Media Group / TVNZ 1

Sammy Salsa
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Jane Holland
Cowboy Bebop
Intergalactic Productions / Netflix

Best Makeup Design

Sarah O’Gorman
Under The Vines
Libertine Pictures & EQ Media Group / TVNZ 1

Amanda Ashton
Ahikāroa: Season 4
Kura Productions / Whakaata Māori

Kelly Mitchell
The Panthers
Tavake Limited / TVNZ 1 & TVNZ+

Best Script: Comedy

Pax Assadi
Raised by Refugees
Kevin & Co / Prime