The Central Otago District Council renewed its Film Friendly Policy for a further three-year period at its meeting on Wednesday (June 28).

Economic development manager Nick Lanham presented a report on the Film Friendly Policy that has been in place since December 2007, with the current policy last updated in May 2018. 

The policy is part of a relationship agreement between the council and Film New Zealand, now part of the New Zealand Film Commission.

“The intent is to promote Central Otago as a preferred location for filming,” Nick said. 

“It could be a movie, it could be a television commercial, it could be a tv documentary or a series.

“Central Otago is very well held in wide regard as a place to film, not just because of our people and our stunning landscapes, it is because council and the community do support the initiative to film in the district.”

Since 2018, several notable international productions have been filmed in Central Otago, including The Power of the Dog, Sweet Tooth, Only Cloud Knows, and Mulan.  

Councillor Stu Duncan, who lives in the Maniototo where much of The Power of the Dog was filmed, said the impact of that was great.

“When you look at the influx of capital and people when The Power of the Dog was in our community, it took a lot of people into the workforce who otherwise would not be working,” he said.