Our Board

Graeme has over 30 years of international experience in film, television and multimedia content & businesses. He was the Chief Executive of Screen Australia for a decade, previously Chief Executive of NZFC for over four years, and has extensive global experience across production, distribution, sales, acquisitions, research and business development.

He has been a passionate supporter of initiatives and activities that empower content creators and businesses to make the most of their opportunities and ensure the best result for them and their content creatively and commercially.

Cinema obsessed from an early age, Ant left a law degree in the mid-80s to pursue a life in all facets of film – from production, exhibition, distribution through to marketing. In the early 90s he created the distribution company 2Brothers to handle specialist product and was manager of seminal New Zealand arthouse Charley Gray’s. He was a Board Member on the Moving Image Centre and created New Zealand’s first short film series Short Fuse. He founded the Incredibly Strange Film festival and still programmes the New Zealand International Film Festival. In 2003 he created New Zealand's largest film competition 48HOURS with Sir Peter Jackson as mentor. He also managed three devolved film funds for the NZFC – Headstrong, Make My Movie & 48+

As a producer he conceived and created the US series The ABCs of Death as well as producing a slew of successful international features, including the multi-award winning thriller Housebound, the Canadian/ New Zealand cult-hit Turbo-Kid and the BIFA award-winning comedy, The Greasy Strangler.  He was the inaugural winner of ‘The New Zealand Art Entrepreneur of the Year' and recently directed his debut feature Come to Daddy with Elijah Wood.  He’s a lifelong collector of 35mm film prints and houses one of the largest private collections in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sandra Kailahi is a film producer, writer, author and playwright and spent 26 years working as a journalist in mainstream and Pacific media with such programmes at Tagata Pasifika, Fair Go, TVNZ 7 and as a news producer for Te Karere and One News.  Film credits include, The Messiah and the new documentary, For My Father’s Kingdom (set for release in 2019).

She is currently the Strategic Communications Manager at Alliance Community Initiatives Trust, a charitable trust that focuses on revolutionizing the way social change happens – one person, one family, and one community at a time in South Auckland.

Sandra is the current Chair of the Pacific Advisory Group at the Auckland Museum, a co-opted member of the Auckland Museum Trust Board, a former Trustee of the National Pacific Radio Trust and a trustee of the Pacific Islands Film & Television board (PIFT).

Sandra is passionate about Pacific storytelling and is of Tongan and Kiwi ancestry. 

David has spent the past 25 years working to support storytellers and technologists within the New Zealand screen industry. A member of both the Institute of Directors and the Institute of Chartered Accountants he has worked in senior management roles within the New Zealand television, feature film and digital visual effects sectors and enjoys nothing more than seeing New Zealand screen content succeed on the global stage. Formerly the Chief Operating Officer for Weta Digital, David completed 12 years with the Weta group in 2020 where he has managed significant growth in international screen production opportunities. David lives in Wellington and is also a Digital Media Trust board member.

Jane is a commercial barrister, based in Wellington, and has a wide range of public and commercial experience. In addition to her legal practice, she has a number of governance roles, and is currently the Chief Commissioner of the Transport Accident Investigation Commission, the Deputy Chair of the Electoral Commission, Chair of Financial Services Complaints Limited (a financial ombudsman service), Chair of the Royal New Zealand Ballet Foundation and a member of the Risk and Assurance Committee of LINZ.

Ngila is a Costume Designer who has worked extensively on feature films both in New Zealand and internationally. She has collaborated with some of the most successful filmmakers and talent in the world.  Ngila received several BAFTA nominations for her work on Peter Jackson’s The Lord of The Rings trilogy and in 2004 received an Academy Award for the final instalment The Return of the King as well as a nomination that year for The Last Samurai.

Ngila was awarded an Officer of the Order of New Zealand (ONZM) for services to design and the film industry in the 2004 Queen's Birthday Honours. In 2008 she received an Arts Foundation Laureate Award.  She is a current member of BAFTA, AMPAS and WIFT.

Before entering the film industry, Ngila worked as a magazine editor, stylist and fashion designer.

Aimee has been the CEO of Pic’s Peanut Butter since taking over the reins from her stepfather Pic Picot in early 2023.  Prior to that, Aimee was the CEO NZ of Augusto Group, an entertainment, advertising and technology company.  She also served as General Manager of Peter Jackson’s Park Road Post Production for three years, leading a world class team of Oscar winning creatives alongside digital and film laboratories.

Aimee has also held senior management roles at Assignment Group and Trade Me, following a successful career with the Saatchi & Saatchi network that spanned Wellington, Auckland and New York. She is an experienced strategist and brand builder with deep knowledge of consumer marketing. Her brand experience spans an array of New Zealand’s power brands including Whittaker’s, Toyota, Lotto, Tourism NZ and 42 Below.

Aimee resides in Wellington with her partner and two children.

Jon is a Wellington-based producer, director and writer who has worked in film and television. He is originally from the US, where he produced TV shows for more than 30 years, including The Amazing Race, for which he received a Primetime Emmy Award. He has been the EP and Showrunner of National Geographic’s hit show Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted since its inception, and another of his National Geographic projects, Extraordinary Birder with Christian Cooper, received two 2024 Emmy nominations and one win.

Jon’s other projects include the award-winning feature documentary From Hell to Hollywood which won the Audience Award at the Kansas City Film Fest International; Pink Collar Crimes for CBS; two seasons of American Grit for Fox starring John Cena; three seasons of Big Brother for CBS; and the controversial UPN series, Amish in the City, which critics hailed as “One of the best new reality series of the year.” He has also directed three movies, written multiple graphic novels, and built a Hello Kitty theme park.  He is a member of the DGA, WGA, ATAS, WIFT and SPADA.

In 2022 Jon relocated to NZ with his wife, competitive archer Karen Kroll.