
Kia ora tatou
The first newsletter for the year and sadly, of course, the first acknowledgement we must make is to our Christchurch colleagues coming to terms with the aftermath of the February earthquake. All of us at NZ On Air were devastated in February at the news, to learn of the CTV disaster, and of the shocking circumstances faced by so many in the wider NZ On Air broadcast and music family. Our Community Broadcasting Manager Keith Collins flew to Christchurch for CTV manager Murray Wood's funeral and our team continues to keep close tabs on events and people there.
For those outside Canterbury I thought it might be helpful to outline what's happened to those in our sector. Most of our stakeholders have premises in the central city. Our deepest sympathies are with the workmates, friends and family of our CTV colleagues who have died. A single pinpoint of light in this darkness was the acceptance by CTV's Ian Cumming of my Facebook friend request a day or two after the quake: social media is a wonderful tracker. We are in contact with CTV's owners as future options for the service are developed.
Radio New Zealand and the Sound Archives staff are safe but will likely be out of their building for some months. RNZ news and technical staff, several homeless, have been doing a wonderful job broadcasting from a motel. TRN and MediaWorks radio personnel are the same; safe and broadcasting brilliantly from mostly temporary premises. While its premises may be closed, Karen, Kapoi and the team at the Sound Archives are still working hard capturing the broadcast material around the earthquake. It will be a remarkable record for future generations.
TVNZ staff are also safe and evacuated, but with buildings severely damaged. Whitebait Studios suffered only minor damage and helped accommodate TVNZ staff. Whitebait's What Now goes to air this Sunday with a special dedication to two of its young crew members who died in the CTV building. For further information see press release here.
Other television production companies, and those in the music and radio communities, are also safe but many have properties with various levels of damage. Plains FM, the access radio station, and RDU, the student radio station, have mainly been off air as their premises are inside the cordon (RDU has had an ingenious temporary broadcast running through an Apple laptop).
And of course so many have suffered severe damage to their homes, some still homeless or without services. That includes NZ On Air's deputy chair Murray Shaw and former deputy chair Edie Moke. On the Stuff website Press journalist and music writer Vicki Anderson, while homeless, has written some extraordinarily moving accounts of the effects on her family.
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Our thoughts are now also with the NZ-based Japanese programme makers involved in access radio stations around New Zealand. NZ On Air salutes the professionalism of all in the Christchurch broadcast and music community during this crisis. Our priorities are with our existing stakeholders: we are reviewing all existing contracts and making adjustments and new arrangements as necessary to provide support and to help the process of rebuilding. Please contact us for help.
Kia kaha. Jane |
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We were delighted to see in January that NZ Music Manager Brendan Smyth had been recognised in the New Year's Honours list for services to New Zealand music. Next month he'll be at Government House to become a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM). Brendan has been a passionate supporter of and advocate for New Zealand music for even longer than his 21 years service at NZ On Air, and we are thrilled his dedication has been recognised in this way.
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We're delighted that Gina Rogers has accepted the role of Senior Communications Advisor. This is a new part-time position which we're sharing 50/50 with the NZ Film Commission. Gina will join us after Easter and will be helping us sharpen up the content of our website and newsletter. She'll also help look after media and industry relations as well as pulling together external documents such as the annual report and SOI. Gina is a journalist and is currently Deputy Editor of Checkpoint, Radio New Zealand's early evening news and current affairs programme. She's worked as a journalist for RNZ, TVNZ, BBC World, CNBC, and started out at IRN. She has a Bachelor of Broadcast Communications from the NZ Broadcasting School and also a BA. She's looking forward to getting out and about to learn more about the wider filmmaking and independent production world.
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Also in this newsletter are the results of the March round. We committed just over $9.8m in new production, ranging from the renewal of hit drama series Go Girls, to a major Platinum Fund documentary on the Strongman mine disaster Journey Into Darkness, to children's drama feature Kiwi Flyer.
But, as we have been signaling for some time, requests on our funding have been at very high levels this year. With these March decisions we now only have funding left for planned programme renewals.
This means we are unable to consider significant new projects until the new financial year (deadline 24 June for the August round).
At the June round (deadline 21 April) we will be considering applications arising from the RFPs for the Maori Innovation Fund and the Digital Content Partnership Fund along with programme renewals.
Along with the entire film and television industry we note with considerable sadness the passing of Graeme Tetley. Not only a gifted screenwriter, his script assessments were firm, fair and generous. Some will remember his daughter Emma (now Emma Harty, living in Ireland but set to return to NZ in May) worked at NZ On Air in the late 1990s as an integral part of the TV team. Our thoughts are with Emma, Jonty and the family. It's been a rough start to the year for the sector: we also note with sadness the passing of Frank Whitten and Rob Jackways.
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Digital Content Partnership Fund online drama, Reservoir Hill: Everyone Lies, has emulated its Emmy award winning predecessor by being nominated in this year's International Digital Emmy Awards. Congratulations to Thomas Robins and David Stubbs. Fingers crossed for two in a row. Reservoir Hill: Everyone Lies has also been nominated as a finalist in the New York Film and Television Awards, along with Outrageous Fortune, Go Girls and Stolen.
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NZ On Air-supported documentaries I Am the River, Donated to Science, Dirty Bloody Hippies and Is She or Isn't He? recently screened as part of the Documentary Edge Festival. I Am the River and Donated to Science both won awards --
I Am the River - Best New Zealand Feature Documentary; Best NZ Cinematography and Best NZ Editing
Donated to Science - Best NZ Director (Paul Trotman)
Untouchable Girls - Topp Twins was also co-winner of the Outstanding Contribution to the NZ Documentary Industry award
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This round gave us an opportunity to build on previous successes. New investments were made in a fourth series of the very successful TV2 drama Go Girls; a second series for returning comedies A Night At the Classic and WannaBen for TV One and TV3 respectively; and a second series of the popular TV3 arts series The Secret Lives of Dancers. We have also taken a minority investment position (with the NZFC) in children's drama Kiwi Flyer, made by Tony Simpson's Christchurch-based Torrent Films and set in Nelson. |
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And we're backing Style Pasifika again, the extraordinary homage to Pacific Island design creativity.
See the full list of Contestable Fund decisions for March at the end of this newsletter
Two Platinum Fund projects were supported in this round. Docudrama Journey Into Darkness will be a compelling and timely retelling of the 1967 Strongman Mine explosion and subsequent Commission of Enquiry. This project will be produced for TV3 by Paula McTaggart (A Bigger Picture) with Gaylene Preston executive producing and directing. We're also backing a natural history special for TV One entitled Primeval New Zealand: Where Wild Meets Weird to be made by Dunedin's award-winning Natural History New Zealand.
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Congratulations to the Eyeworks' cast and crew of the Platinum Fund Waitangi Day special What Really Happened - Waitangi. The drama received widespread praise for its entertaining and informative depiction of the events surrounding the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. Reviewer Diana Wichtel referred to it as an 'instant classic' in her review in The Listener.
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Other Platinum projects intended for 2011 broadcast include Q+A (which started on 20 March), The Nation (starting on 2 April), the dramas Bliss (recently completed) and Tangiwai (currently in post production).
More recently funded dramas Underbelly, Billy and Rage are in various stages of pre-production.
The historical docudramas The Golden Hour, Cancerman and Ice Captain are finishing their shoots or in post production.
Documentary series Descent from Disaster and Wild Coasts are at early stages of pre-production. The documentary special The Hunt for the Pink and White Terraces is in post production.
A reminder that the expressions of interest for the four documentary projects comprising the strand The Story close on 31 March. See the RFP here.
A full list of Platinum projects supported this financial year is here
Applications for 2011/12 contestable programme funding are due on April 21 for the June meeting. The criteria are available here.
We have streamlined our budgeting and reporting system for this year, so please check the application materials carefully.
We're pleased to report that access radio stations have delivered 5% more first run, locally produced priority section 36c content in the October to December 2010 quarter than for the same period in 2009. Well done to all the hard-working access radio teams around the country.
We have advised access radio managers that the annual funding applications for 2011/12 should come to the August meeting instead of June. A longer broadcast period will allow us to assess performance against the new criteria.
568 applications were received for this month's music video, new recordings and album funding rounds. Ten new recordings grants, six album investments and 32 music video grants were allocated to a broad range of artists and projects. See the end of this newsletter for details.
We have now closed the new recordings and album schemes. We will have a final music video round in June as planned (deadline 21 April). Details of our new music funding scheme are being finalised in April and will be released in May. Keep an eye on kiwihits.co.nz for news - we're getting excited about the new opportunities opening up.
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The 168 albums completed since the scheme launched in 2000, have
delivered 523 radio singles, of which 492 have been radio hits.
That is an impressive 94% radio hits strike rate. The
scheme delivered significant albums by artists like Bic Runga,
betchadupa, Shihad, Blindspott, P-Money, Brooke Fraser, Katchafire,
Opshop, Tiki Taane, Cut Off Your Hands and Shapeshifter. There's a
few more in the pipeline too.
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The New Recording Artist scheme also launched in 2000 was
essentially a new artist discovery programme and in its ten-year
lifetime, gave more than 350 new artists a break at radio.
Many who came through the New Recording Artist scheme went on
to be household names. It's where we first heard Nesian
Mystik, Gin Wigmore, Goodnight Nurse, The Checks, Kimbra, Motocade,
Dukes and Dane Rumble. Big songs like Goldenhorse's Maybe
Tomorrow, Brooke Fraser's first single, Better,
Steriogram's iconic Walkie Talkie Man and Midnight Youth's
huge hit, The Letter, were supported through the New
Recording Artists scheme.
NZ On Air's new NZ music funding scheme, building on these
successes, will be based on funding the recording of single
tracks, with music videos to back up their release. We'll be
looking to add to our success on commercial radio with an
improvement to diversity of funded music.
Much of what NZ On Air does in the music space will change.
Between now and 1 July, when the new policies and programmes
come into effect, we will be making a series of announcements about
how things will work.
The next announcement in April will be advertising three full-time
jobs in NZ On Air's Auckland promotions office - a Broadcast
Promotions job and a Repertoire job, replacing two contract
positions, and a New Media role which will be a one-year
contract.
In mid-May we'll announce details about the funding schemes'
criteria. Finally, we hope to confirm some new media initiatives in
June.
Keep an eye on www.kiwihits.co.nz for
details.
The national music sales charts for the week of 14 March made
great reading for New Zealand music. The biggest selling
single, the biggest selling album and the biggest selling
compilation were all local titles.
Debuting at #1 on the Top 40 Singles Chart was Love, Love,
Love, the first single from one-man-band, Avalanche City.
The song was on Kiwi Hit Disc 133 in December 2010 and comes
with an NZ On Air-funded music video. Love, Love,
Love is currently the most-played New Zealand song on New
Zealand radio, as well as being the biggest-selling single, and is
also being used by TV2 as the channel's promo.
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Over on the Top 40 Albums Chart, the #1 slot was taken by Tiki
Taane with his second album, In The World Of Light, the
follow up to his platinum-selling debut, Past Present
Future. NZ On Air invested in both albums.
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The Naked & Famous are getting a lot of attention
in the US and the UK at the moment.
Young Blood, the band's first single from their NZ On Air
part-funded debut album, Passive Me, Aggressive You, got
to #8 on the CMJ college radio airplay charts in America in January
this year and was the fourth most-added song on US alternative
radio in the week of 15 February. The song is now
climbing the Mediabase Alt Airplay chart in the US and at the time
of writing was #23 on the Top 50.
The Passive Me, Aggressive You album has now been released
in the US and the UK and at the time of writing was #7 on the
iTunes Store Top 10 Albums in both the US and the UK and in
Ireland. It was the #2 biggest-seller on the iTunes Store Top
10 Alternative Albums Chart in the US, #3 in the UK and Ireland and
#4 in Canada.
NZ On Air is contributing to the band's international radio
promotion campaign.
A reminder that our invoice payment day has changed to Thursday. The deadline for receipt of invoices and reports is 5pm Monday.
To avoid delays in invoice payments:
Television Funding Decisions |
|||||||
|
Genre |
Programme |
Total Amount Approved |
No. Of Episodes |
Length of Episodes (minutes) |
|
Production Company |
Channel |
|
Arts/Culture |
STYLE PASIFIKA 2011 |
155,842 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Drum Productions |
TV One |
|
Arts/Culture |
THE SECRET LIVES OF DANCERS 2 |
662,804 |
8.0 |
30.0 |
|
Eyeworks New Zealand Film & TV Drama |
TV3 |
|
Arts/Culture |
WAIATA MAORI MUSIC AWARDS 2011 |
67,500 |
1.0 |
90.0 |
|
Arts & Entertainment Productions |
MTS |
|
Children |
SMOKEFREE ROCKQUEST 2011 |
301,361 |
6.0 |
30.0 |
|
Visionary Film & TV |
FOUR |
|
Children's Drama |
KIWI FLYER |
190,000 |
1.0 |
120.0 |
|
Torrent Films |
FOUR |
|
Comedy |
A NIGHT AT THE CLASSIC series 2 |
595,175 |
8.0 |
30.0 |
|
Two Heads |
TV One |
|
Comedy |
COMEDY JAM 2011 |
126,830 |
2.0 |
60.0 |
|
Satellite Media Group |
TV 2 |
|
Comedy |
WANNA-BEn Series 2 |
594,310 |
8.0 |
30.0 |
|
Yoink Productions |
TV3 |
|
Comedy |
WOULD I LIE TO YOU? |
248,325 |
16.0 |
30.0 |
|
TVWorks |
TV3 |
|
Drama |
GO GIRLS series 4 |
6,825,000 |
13.0 |
60.0 |
|
South Pacific Pictures |
TV 2 |
|
Documentary |
* JOURNEY INTO DARKNESS |
884,782 |
1.0 |
90.0 |
|
A Bigger Picture |
TV3 |
|
Documentary |
* PRIMEVAL NEW ZEALAND - WHERE WILD MEETS WEIRD |
270,554 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Natural History NZ |
TV One |
|
*This programme was supported by the NZ On Air Platinum Fund |
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The Pakipumeka Working Group has made the following funding decisions for MTS documentaries: |
|||||||
|
Genre |
Programme |
Total Amount Approved |
No. Of Episodes |
Length of Episodes (minutes) |
|
Production Company |
Channel |
|
Documentary |
AFA KASI - THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS |
131,809 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Tumanako Productions |
MTS |
|
Documentary |
HE RANGI TAHI |
126,682 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Monsoon Pictures International |
MTS |
|
Documentary |
HENARE O'KEEFE: TE TUATANGATA |
111,734 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Notable Pictures |
MTS |
|
Documentary |
IHIMAERA |
98,700 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Charlotte Yates Productions |
MTS |
|
Documentary |
KA MATE THE HAKA THE LEGEND |
167,000 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Maramena |
MTS |
|
Documentary |
RHODES - ACTOR SINGER |
120,544 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Arts & Entertainment Productions |
MTS |
|
Documentary |
THE GREEN CHAIN |
125,000 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Scottie Douglas Productions |
MTS |
|
Documentary |
TUPAIA'S ENDEAVOUR |
118,762 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Island Productions Aotearoa |
MTS |
|
Documentary |
WEIGHT OF THE NATION |
124,967 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Paua Productions |
MTS |
|
Documentary |
THE RUSSIANS ARE COMING |
124,800 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Tawera Productions |
MTS |
|
The Inside New Zealand 2010 Working Group has made the following funding decisions for TV3 documentaries: |
|||||||
|
Genre |
Programme |
Total Amount Approved |
No. Of Episodes |
Length of Episodes (minutes) |
|
Production Company |
Channel |
|
Documentary |
THE FAMILY BEANSPROUT |
105,288 |
1.0 |
60.0 |
|
Iguana Films |
TV3 |
Radio Funding Decisions |
|
||||||
|
Funding Type |
Description |
Total Amount Approved |
No. Of Episodes |
Length of Episodes (minutes) |
|
Channel |
|
|
Radio Programme Production |
Lumsden |
20,800 |
13.0 |
3.0 |
|
Radio Sport |
|
|
Radio Programme Production |
Easter 2011 |
15,000 |
1.0 |
720.0 |
|
NewstalkZB |
|
Music Funding Decisions |
|||||||
|
Funding Type |
Description |
Total Amount Approved |
No. Of Episodes |
Length of Episodes (minutes) |
|
Production Company |
Channel |
|
NZ Music Programmes Radio |
Homegrown to June 2011 |
26,630 |
26.0 |
60.0 |
|
Rhema Broadcasting |
Radio Rhema |
|
NZ Music Programmes TV |
Decent Exposure |
90,000 |
1950.0 |
5.0 |
|
TVWorks |
FOUR |
|
NZ Music Programmes TV |
Drew & Shannon Live - NZ music content |
160,000 |
200.0 |
20.0 |
|
TVWorks |
FOUR |
|
Funding Type |
Artist - Project |
Total Amount Approved |
Production Company |
|
|||
|
NZ Music Albums |
Black River Drive - Album 2 |
upto 50,000 |
Black River Records |
|
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|
NZ Music Albums |
K. One - Album 1 |
upto 50,000 |
Illegal Musik |
|
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|
NZ Music Albums |
Kids Of 88 - Album 2 |
upto 50,000 |
Dryden Street |
|
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|
NZ Music Albums |
Pieter T - Album 2 |
upto 50,000 |
Handmade Records |
|
|||
|
NZ Music Albums |
Shapeshifter - Album 5 |
upto 50,000 |
Truetone Records |
|
|||
|
NZ Music Albums |
The Datsuns - Album 5 |
upto 28,190 |
Hellsquad Records |
|
|||
|
NZ Music Albums |
Tiki - Album 2 |
upto 50,000 |
Dirty Management |
|
|||
|
NZ Music International |
David Dallas - Big Time/USA |
upto 18,600 |
Dirty Management |
|
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|
NZ Music International |
Jackie Bristow - Freedom/USA |
upto 2,000 |
Jackie Bristow |
|
|||
|
NZ Music International |
Kimbra - Settle Down/Australia |
upto 20,000 |
Paul Ellis Publicity |
|
|||
|
NZ Music International |
Ladi6 - Bang Bang/Australia |
upto 6,000 |
SLR |
|
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|
NZ Music International |
Six60 - Rise Up/Australia |
upto 3,900 |
Massive Entertainment |
|
|||
|
NZ Music International |
Street Chant - Means/Australia |
upto 18,000 |
Arch Hill Recordings |
|
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|
NZ Music New Recordings |
1995 - Nowhere Slow |
10,000 |
Isaac Promotions |
|
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|
NZ Music New Recordings |
Chris Cope - World Without You |
10,000 |
Chris Cope |
|
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|
NZ Music New Recordings |
Janine Foster - These Big Tears |
10,000 |
Janine Foster |
|
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|
NZ Music New Recordings |
Jesse Sheehan - Grandma's Cookies |
10,000 |
The Family Of Actors |
|
|||
|
NZ Music New Recordings |
Junica - Living In My House |
4,000 |
Page One Management |
|
|||
|
NZ Music New Recordings |
Leno Lovecraft - Princess |
10,000 |
A Low Hum |
|
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|
NZ Music New Recordings |
Lydia Cole - Love and Loss and Love |
10,000 |
CRS Records |
|
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|
NZ Music New Recordings |
Mel Parsons - I Won't Let You Down |
10,000 |
Cape Road Recordings |
|
|||
|
NZ Music New Recordings |
Ruby Frost - Smoke & Mirrors |
10,000 |
Universal Music NZ |
|
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|
NZ Music New Recordings |
The Good Fun - Karaoke |
10,000 |
The Good Fun |
|
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|
NZ Music New Recordings |
Tyson Tyler - Go Hard |
10,000 |
Illegal Musik |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
A Hori Buzz - Turnaround |
5,000 |
Loop Media |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Anna Coddington - Free |
5,000 |
Isaac Promotions |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Avalanche City - Slowly Over Me |
5,000 |
Avalanche City |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Barnaby Weir - I'm Coming Home |
5,000 |
EMI Music NZ |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Bulletproof feat Jessie G - Dub Me Crazy |
5,000 |
Dirty Management |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Dear Time's Waste - And So I Was Returning |
5,000 |
Isaac Promotions |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
DJ Sir-vere ft J Williams, JR etc - Major Flavours |
5,000 |
Illegal Musik |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Dukes - Secrets |
5,000 |
Play Nicely |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Family Cactus - Fields & Fields |
5,000 |
Sony Music Entertainment |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Flip Grater - I Am Gone |
5,000 |
Maiden Records |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Glass Owls - Griffin Boy |
5,000 |
Isaac Promotions |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Home Brew - Remember That |
5,000 |
Home Brew Crew |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Inverse Order - 15:04 |
5,000 |
Isaac Promotions |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
J Williams - Got You Where I Want You |
5,000 |
Illegal Musik |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Jayson Norris - The End |
5,000 |
Loop Media |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
K. One - She's A Killer |
5,000 |
Illegal Musik |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Kimbra - Cameo Lover |
5,000 |
Forum 5 |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Ladi6 - Like Water |
5,000 |
Question Music |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Little Bark - Party |
5,000 |
Little Bark |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Luke Thompson - Water |
5,000 |
Luke Thompson |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Massad - Waiting |
5,000 |
Massadmusic |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Motocade - Hollywood Girls |
5,000 |
Isaac Promotions |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Opshop - Love Will Always Win |
5,000 |
Opshop Music |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
PNC - That Kinda Guy |
5,000 |
Dirty Management |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Ruby Frost - Odyssey |
5,000 |
Universal Music NZ |
|
|||
|
NZ Music Videos |
Shotgun Alley - Eventually |
5,000 |
Hark Music |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
The Adults - One Million Ways |
5,000 |
Warner Music New Zealand |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
The Earlybirds - Homegrown song |
5,000 |
The Earlybirds Music & Publishing |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
The Jury & The Saints feat Stan Walker - Patience |
5,000 |
The Jury & The Saints |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
The Rabble - The Journey |
5,000 |
Filthy Lucre Enterprises |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Tiki Taane & Crushington - Light Years Away |
5,000 |
Dirty Dub |
|
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|
NZ Music Videos |
Vince Harder - Hands Up |
5,000 |
Illegal Musik |
|
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