12 must-see festival documentaries and feature films from NZIFF's General Manager.
Films — by Collection
- Film Talks: Jane Ross
- Flicks.co.nz
- Letterboxd Community
- Letterboxd Crew
- Lumière Cinemas
- Staff Picks: Bradley Pratt
- Staff Picks: Charlotte Underhill
- Staff Picks: Daniel Burger
- Staff Picks: Emma Carter
- Staff Picks: Ina Kinski
- Staff Picks: Jessica Hof
- Staff Picks: Lauren Day
- Staff Picks: Lauri Korpela
- Staff Picks: Lynnaire MacDonald
- Staff Picks: Michael McDonnell
- Staff Picks: Nick Paris
- Staff Picks: Rebecca McMillan
- Staff Picks: Sandra Reid
- Staff Picks: Sharon Byrne
- Staff Picks: Tim Wong
- Wellington Film Society
Staff Picks: Sharon Byrne
![Amazing Grace](/assets/resized/sm/upload/vh/2h/u5/gy/AG_Still_7%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=702c024e6d)
Amazing Grace
Rescued from 45 years in legal and technical limbo, this extraordinary music film capturing Aretha Franklin in full flight deserves your respect – and the biggest screen and sound system possible.
![Maiden](/assets/resized/sm/upload/3t/ox/55/mz/1%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=df6e975562)
Maiden
Utilising a treasure trove of archival footage, director Alex Holmes celebrates the history of Maiden Great Britain, the first all-female crew to compete in the Whitbread Round the World Race.
![Bellbird](/assets/resized/sm/upload/cq/pm/d4/q8/bellbird1%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=56a85db610)
Bellbird
Marshall Napier, Cohen Holloway and Rachel House shine in Hamish Bennett’s beautifully judged, poignantly funny drama of life and community on a struggling Northland family dairy farm.
![Sorry We Missed You](/assets/resized/sm/upload/7i/nw/mt/ft/SWMY_DAY_11_145__c__Joss_Barratt%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=d99ed5d8e7)
Sorry We Missed You
A most worthy follow-up to I, Daniel Blake, Ken Loach’s new social-realist drama zeroes in on life as an average British family at the mercy of the modern day ‘gig economy’.
![Aquarela](/assets/resized/sm/upload/f5/j5/92/0i/1_%7B256feaaa-df20-e911-944e-0ad9f5e1f797%7D%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=6fa6ecae54)
Aquarela
The elemental power and glory of water is captured with high frame rate, ultra-definition cameras in film artist Victor Kossakovsky’s spectacular visual documentary.
![Walking on Water](/assets/resized/sm/upload/pv/r8/ux/zs/wow2%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=92643ac3cd)
Walking on Water
Octogenarian Christo wraps up a miraculous career with a spectacular network of fabric walkways over an Italian lake, in an oft-humorous closeup look at the process of creation, clashes of egos and perils of nature.
![Varda by Agnès](/assets/resized/sm/upload/9n/ae/xj/lj/varda-by-agnes-av-camera-noirmoutier-2%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=06932117a7)
Varda by Agnès
The late, great French filmmaking icon’s swansong is a magical self-reflection on art, movies, invention and Varda’s own lust for life inside and outside of the cinematic frame.
![One Child Nation](/assets/resized/sm/upload/ob/uv/q0/m5/Film%20Still_03%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=e99342a44b)
One Child Nation
A frank documentary about the wide-reaching impact of China’s one-child policy, Nanfu Wang and Jialing Zhang unearth the frightening reality of the regime they were raised under. Winner Grand Jury Prize, Sundance 2019.
![Ask Dr. Ruth](/assets/resized/sm/upload/6t/oa/2p/46/ASK_DR._RUTH_%5BCourtesy_of_Hulu%5D_1_PR_HR_UBG%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=b02e0bbc06)
Ask Dr. Ruth
As her 90th birthday approaches, irrepressible Dr Ruth, the famed American sex therapist, reflects on her life and career in a film as spirited as she is.