Whānau Mārama New Zealand International Film Festival (NZIFF) is pleased to announce 86 feature films and 19 shorts in the 2024 line-up. We will open in Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington on 31 July before touring nine other centres across the country until 4 September.

The 2024 programme includes 12 New Zealand films, plus a special 30th anniversary screening of Peter Jackson’s Heavenly Creatures.

NZIFF 2024 Artistic Director Paolo Bertolin says, “This year’s programme is a celebration of the diversity and plurality of contemporary cinema. Our audiences will enjoy films that move, thrill and keep them on the edge of their seats, while also having the opportunity to experience films that open conversations about the reality of the world today, asking necessary questions and probing into uncomfortable truths. Cinephiles will rejoice with the latest efforts from world-class masters and discoveries that signal new talents of tomorrow. 

“At the forefront of this rich mosaic is a contingent of productions from Aotearoa, showcasing a vibrant vitality equally present in features, documentaries and shorts. Jackson’s classic had its world premiere as the Opening Film of the 1994 festival, with then-Festival Director Bill Gosden hailing it as a ‘landmark in New Zealand cinema’. Soon after, it was awarded a Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival by Jury President David Lynch, making it ‘the sensational new movie from New Zealand in cinemas around the world’.

“This anniversary screening is a testament to the historical role of the festival in supporting and promoting the best of domestic cinema; a role that the festival still pursues and is committed to. That is why we can’t wait to share the films we selected with our audiences!”

Festival films come from 20 countries including Bhutan, Iran, Somalia, Nepal and Vietnam, as well as China, Japan, the UK, Ireland, USA, France, Germany, Portugal and Australia.

Executive Director Sally Woodfield says NZIFF 2024 not only brings together a programme of diverse films screening at 15 cinemas and venues nationwide, but also features opportunities to enhance the film-going experience with Q&As, masterclasses, workshops, panel discussions and special events including costume parties and a gig.

“NZIFF 2024 provides a window to the world, connecting us through film with diverse cultures, lifestyles and stories,” Woodfield says. “We invite you to immerse yourself in the festival and celebrate the best in global cinema on screens right here in Aotearoa New Zealand.”

Seven international guests, together with New Zealand filmmakers, will present their films at more than 60 NZIFF 2024 sessions across the motu including in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin, Hamilton, Napier, Tauranga, New Plymouth, Nelson, and Masterton. These include Adam Kamien and Luke Rynderman (The Speedway Murders), Christine Jeffs (A Mistake), Gints Zilbalodis (Flow), Lin Jianjie (Brief History of a Family), Jonathan Ogilvie (Head South), Josephine Stewart Te-Whiu (We Were Dangerous), Joshua Prendeville (The House Within), Katie Wolfe (The Haka Party Incident), Kent Belcher (Alien Weaponry: Kua Tupu Te Ara), Lucy Lawless (Never Look Away), Min Bahadur Bham (Shambhala), Mo Harawe (The Village Next to Paradise), Neo Sora (Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus), Paul Wolffram (Marimari), and Whetū Fala (Taki Rua Theatre – Breaking Barriers).

New Zealand film will be celebrated at Aotearoa Film Focus Weekend, a special event on 15 to 18 August at Auckland’s ASB Waterfront Theatre supported by the University of Auckland Faculty of Arts. Across four days and nights, audiences can enjoy films, a new exhibition by the New Zealand Cinematographers Society, panel discussions, a workshop, a masterclass, and filmmaker Q&A events. Exclusive to AFFW will also be a tribute to iconoclastic director Garth Maxwell, showcasing his film Naughty Little Peeptoe, which has recently been acquired by MoMA, plus the remastered version of his early work Come With Us. Bertolin says, “Aotearoa Film Focus Weekend will spotlight the vivid resurgence of local cinema, thanks to an exciting new generation of filmmakers, but also the work of more established directors. We wish to engage audiences, especially young people, with New Zealand cinema, creating a dialogue that goes beyond the sheer screening of films. And we hope that this connection will last beyond the festival, truly benefiting both filmmakers and audiences.”

Tickets for all screenings will be on sale for Wellington and Auckland from 10am Friday 12 July and 10am Friday 19 July respectively, with tickets for all other centres going on sale in late July. Tickets can be purchased online or in-person at the NZIFF Box Office on Allen Street, Wellington, and at The Civic on Wellesley Street West, Auckland.