The Hobbit to stay in NZ
This week heralds a new era for movie-goers in Levin with the opening of the revamped Focal Point cinema.
I was fortunate to have a look inside this boutique style cinema and was very impressed. It has created 18 new full or part-time jobs in the area and will complement the well-established Shoreline cinema in Waikanae.
On the subject of movies, Prime Minister John Key had to step in at the last minute to save thousands of jobs when The Hobbit movie production looked set to move offshore.
Negative union activity had caused so much uncertainty that hosting the production in New Zealand looked extremely unlikely.
The Government has now passed legislation clarifying the positions of film industry employees and contractors. It is a simple and commonsense response to union action which was threatening to boycott the production of the film, and possibly take it offshore.
This offers a greater amount of certainty to those involved, and has given the filmmakers the confidence to proceed with making the movie in our country.
This is fantastic news for the movie industry in New Zealand, and for all of the Kiwis who will be involved in every stage of the two-movie project.
Thousands of jobs are set to be created for actors, technicians and crew members, as well as many more in the hospitality and transport industries.
The loss to the tourism industry would have been disastrous if Sir Peter Jackson’s project had gone to another country. We are still a top destination for those who enjoyed the Lord of the Rings movies, and this will be a great chance to repeat that success.
With some filming occurring in Wellington our region will again benefit. It has spin-off benefits for Kapiti and Horowhenua tourism, both when the movie is being made and when it’s released worldwide.
The filming of The Hobbit will be yet another great success story for our film industry, which is now worth $2.8 billion to the New Zealand economy. I’m extremely proud of the effort made by the Government to keep the movie here.