Tinseltown, Taika and an old timber mill could be a match made in Hollywood heaven

By Maia Hart

A "business partner" of Taika Waititi has visited an old sawmill in Marlborough that is being looked at as a new film studio.

The scouting trip to Marlborough, on Wednesday this week, was let slip at a council meeting on Thursday.

Marlborough District Council economic development programmes manager Dorien Vermaas was updating councillors about the potential film studio - an old sawmill site on Waters Ave, in Blenheim.

Vermaas, who is also part of Screen Marlborough, initially claimed hosting the "business partner" was confidential and off-the-record.

However, deputy mayor Nadine Taylor reminded Vermaas all meetings were recorded - and a local democracy reporter was in the room.

"I think I can say who I hosted ... it was the business partner of Taika Waititi," Vermaas said.

"He was here, and he looked at the film studios, and we talked with him about our start-up screen sector, because that's what we are."

Oscar-winning Kiwi director and actor Waititi was well known for his work on Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Jojo Rabbit, Boy and Thor, among others.

Vermaas did not elaborate any more on the meeting, nor did she say who the business partner was.

The potential film studio location at the old timber manufacturing site was announced last year.

The sawmill closed in 2020, following a review of the company's operations. The company, Timberlink, invested more than $10 million into the Blenheim site which employed 75 people before it shut down.

Site owner Rick Osborne said in July last year it was still early days but using the six-hectare site to shoot movies was an option.

Vermaas said at the meeting Screen Marlborough hosted NZ Film Commissioner David Strong on December 16 and 17.

This included a hui with Screen Marlborough and deputy mayor Nadine Taylor.

A report prepared for the planning and finance meeting said Screen Marlborough was assisting with the potential studio, now known as Sawmill Studios New Zealand.

"Sawmill Studio owners have announced to make the current office-block including the warehouse space behind it available for start-up teams working on screen-productions for free," the report said.

"This is a unique opportunity for Marlborough to attract young and upcoming talent, new teams who can produce creative projects and get things off the ground."

Vermaas told councillors at the meeting, the largest of the buildings at the sawmill site could be used as a sound studio.

She said Strong told them not to have it "too high" in their "agenda" to think they could attract international movies to Blenheim.

But she said he also visited the Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre, which he was impressed with.

"That was really interesting. So we are moving along with the owners of the [sawmill] site, making a plan and maximising how we are going to promote it."

"We're going to try it. Obviously there's a window of maybe six to 12 months, because the owner can't keep it sitting empty forever, so we're very motivated to get some productions in there and see how we go."

She said they were also working closely with the Nelson and Tasman film industry.

"The studio would be Marlborough, this is just the beginning of a collaboration," she said.

Deputy mayor Nadine Taylor said the update "reinforced" why the council took an "initial step" with Screen Wellington.

The Marlborough District Council spent $45,000 ($15,000 per year) on a three-year collaboration with Screen Wellington as part of the region's Long Term Economic Development Plan, which ended in June last year.

"That was a punt, it was a risk, it was just throwing something out there to see if the ripple effect will happen, and it feels like it might be starting to happen for Marlborough," Taylor said.

However, she was concerned Marlborough would not create a "unique identity" if everything was in collaboration with Nelson/Tasman.

But Vermaas thought New Zealand needed to collaborate to attract big films.

"We're just a small blip in the ocean. So there is a reason to collaborate for certain things," she said.

"It would make so much sense for attracting international opportunities to work together, because we simply haven't got enough crew here. So if we do that together, that's good for both our economies."

She said they were also looking into training opportunities, such as in the schools and NMIT, to get more people to learn about the industry.

"From my perspective... it's not about what piece of the pie, it's about making the pie there for us all and being stronger together, so there is plenty for us all."

Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air

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