Growing a sustainable local creative sector

A re-elected National government will let our internationally-successful creative sector grow and become more sustainable by promoting New Zealand content and intellectual property, and by making arts, heritage and broadcasting accessible to communities across the country.

National will build on the successes of our screen sector, which has seen the announcement of numerous major international projects in the past year, as well as the establishment of a screen advisory board to provide guidance from some of the industry’s most successful creators and producers.

“Our smarter incentive structure to promote New Zealand creative talent and intellectual property will allow the domestic screen sector to leverage off the hugely successful international projects,” Arts Spokesman Christopher Finlayson says.

“We have provided certainty for producers, cast and crew through changes to the Employment Relations Act, formalising years of industry practice and saving the filming of the Hobbit movies in New Zealand.

“In the last year we have cut red tape throughout the arts and cultural sector by reforming the Arts Council to remove layers of governance so the focus can be on arts practitioners and audiences. At the same time, the changes ensure better representation of Māori and Pasifika culture than the previous top-heavy structure.

“The arts can also play a strong role in personal and social development for all New Zealanders,” Mr Finlayson says. “The Sistema Aotearoa programme the National Government started in South Auckland, giving young children the opportunity to learn orchestral music, has been hugely successful and we will expand it to other centres.

“We will also consider a Te Papa exhibition, education and storage facility in Manukau, to make the national collection more accessible to the population of our largest and most diverse city,” he says.

Following the announcement of a temporary First World War museum in Wellington to run through the duration of the First World War centenary commemorations, National will investigate the feasibility of a permanent National War Museum.

Broadcasting Spokesman Craig Foss says a re-elected National government will make more New Zealand content available online, while examining our regulatory environment to ensure it is appropriate for the digital age.

“We are focussed on funding New Zealand content, culture, accents and stories via NZ On Air, rather than risking valuable taxpayer money on subsidising a particular distribution method or channel.

“New Zealanders should be able to receive and view content when they want, where they want and how they want, on the platform of their choice, while respecting copyright law.

“National wants New Zealand content to remain accessible after initial release, and is committed to making archival and current content free and easily accessible for all to enjoy.”

Mr Foss says National will maintain public ownership of Television New Zealand and Radio New Zealand, and is future-proofing the distribution of TV, radio and movie content through the digital switchover and roll out of ultra-fast broadband.

“National is also committed to increasing the amount of captioning for deaf and hearing impaired New Zealanders.

“Over the last decade the amount of captioned content has greatly increased, but we believe more can be done. We will continue to work with broadcasters to use digital technology to increase the amount of captioning both on television and online.”

National’s Arts, Heritage and Broadcasting Policy is available at:http://ntnl.org.nz/1p175Jy

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