Meet the team

What exactly do you do day-to-day?

I am here to ensure we have smooth and efficient contracting and compliance processes for funded music content and platforms. My day-to-day varies from liaising with artists, music managers, record labels, publicists and other services related to the various music projects and platforms we fund.

Although every day looks completely different for me, I spend a lot of my time preparing music contracts, checking budgets, reading proposals and listening to A LOT of phenomenal kiwi music.

What are the biggest challenges in your job?

It can be a real challenge juggling all the different aspects and intricacies of executing music contracts as no music project ever looks the same. With the music industry and the way people listen to music ever changing, I often see out of the box release strategy plans and unique promotional campaigns. Although it’s sometimes challenging to fit these plans into a conventional contract, it keeps me on my toes and motivates me to continue learning how the music industry keeps evolving.

What’s the bit about your job you love the most?

It’s a huge honour for me to be in the service of our NZ musicians and everyone that is involved in the process of creating and releasing music. It continues to amaze me that people would come together and bring their best talents, skills and energy, to serve the song and essentially the listener. The part I love most about my job is knowing that at the end of the day, we are empowering fantastic artists to focus on creating great music by providing some financial ease where we can. The purpose in my role and of NZ On Air as a whole, drives me to do my job with passion and excellence every day.

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

Watching live music! It’s one thing to be at home listening to your favourite tunes, but there’s something so transcending about getting out there and feeling the music in a live setting. It’s inspiring, refreshing and going to gigs is also an awesome way to meet other people who love music.

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

After graduating, I lived in L.A to do a dance internship at a Hip Hop studio called Movement Lifestyle. I was lucky enough to learn from world renowned choreographers of many dance styles including Hip Hop, Contemporary and Ballet. Dance is huge passion of mine as well as music!

What exactly do you do day-to-day?

There isn’t really anything I would consider ‘day-to-day’ due to the dynamic nature of the funding cycle. I could be reading proposals for new content, or writing papers in support of the funding recommendations being made, or meeting with programming commissioners and producers to discuss projects, or playing video games from NZ game developers, or studying NZ On Air’s research into audiences - amongst many other things!

What are your biggest challenges in your job?

The media landscape has seen radical change in the past few years with the recent dominance of social media, gaming and streaming video services. As a result, audiences are consuming content in different ways and funding bodies are being forced to adapt in order to meet the needs of an ever evolving industry. This is both challenging and exciting as change forces innovation, giving rise to new opportunities and new ways of telling stories.

What is the bit about your job you love the most?

From a global and historical perspective, Aotearoa’s screen sector is in a really unique place in the post-COVID-19 world. There are so many projects on the go right now. It’s an exciting time to be in this space and I learn something new every day.

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

Spending time with whānau. We don’t have to be doing anything particularly exciting, but quietly sharing time and space together is something that I find really grounding in this hectic world!

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

I worked as a sports journalist in Las Vegas for a few years covering boxing, MMA, and American Football. My love for American Football continues to this day and I’m a die-hard supporter of the Arizona Cardinals.

What exactly do you do day-to-day?

The great thing about my role is the varied nature of everyday. The one constant is our daily senior leadership team meeting but otherwise I might have calls and meetings with various stakeholders and sector people including producers, broadcasters, musicians or band managers, our Ministry, fellow agencies, my Chair or the Board.

We also spend time as a team thinking about some of the strategic challenges and opportunities that our sectors may face and how we might appropriately intervene. I also love reading the various submissions that we receive (despite the incredible volume) to be reminded of the amazing creative talent this wonderful country has.

What are the biggest challenges in your job?

Without a doubt our inability to fund all of the amazing creative content that we get to see.

What’s the bit about your job you love the most?

Our amazing staff. I have to say it is so rare to join an organisation where everything is so brilliantly structured, where people so fully understand and embrace their roles, willingly help and support others and genuinely care about the people, platforms and sectors they support. They work incredibly hard, but have fun and love the varied content that is created through our funding.

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

Running up Mount Kaukau with my young son Ollie, at the pool watching my son Finn, walking our dog Stanley on the beach at Waikanae or at home cooking dinner for my wife Janelle, listening and watching the great content we fund. .

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

I represented New Zealand as an age grade (old) athlete at the World Triathlon Champs.

What exactly do you do day-to-day?

I run the NZ On Air Music promotions, including social media, artist communications, and our NewTracks monthly compilation. I work alongside Jeff (our radio plugger) to promote both funded artists, and other great New Zealand songs to platforms, radio, media and wider New Zealand audiences.

I also create video content that can be used by artists or other music industry organisations as education or resources to understand the industry or our NZ On Air processes. One of our recent pieces, the Inside Producer Series, was used to showcase all the behind-the-scenes of the NZ Music Producer Series and to encourage younger producers to take part.

What are the biggest challenges in your job?

We get a lot of new music every day and we want to give every song our full attention. It can be a real challenge to listen to so much content, but it’s also my favourite part of the job!

What’s the bit about your job you love the most?

Discovering so many incredible kiwi artists early on in their careers. It’s such a special feeling to hear a song for the first time and completely fall in love with an artist. We get to do that a lot and it's awesome to be able to assist in their growth from so early on.

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

I think in the studio or at the beach! I love making music and I love summer so ideally I would be writing songs from the ocean…one day it will be possible.

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

I've had the same voicemail message since I was 10 years old until I was 22 and started with NZ On Air! I figured I should probably change it at that point, but my 10 year old self had gotten me through more than a decade!

What exactly do you do day-to-day?

My role has two aspects. As part of the funding team I assess funding applications, read scripts, check budgets and make recommendations. As an analyst I make and run data analysis tools that track current and previous funding, delivering insights into which production companies and platforms have been funded, how much and what for, trends in genre and delivery, and gender and ethnicity diversity and so on. I’m charged with being curious about what we don’t know based on information we have or can get.

What are the biggest challenges in your job?

Funding assessor: There are always more excellent projects seeking funding than there are funds available to distribute.

Data geek: no two projects are exactly alike so it makes creating formulas that track like-against-like very complicated. Also: if producers could spell the name of their project and production company consistently then that would be awesome, thanks!

What’s the bit about your job you love the most?

Enabling great talent to go make cool stuff.

Writing an elegant formula that does clever things. (I’m that geeky).

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

Either lost inside the many imaginary worlds created by authors, screenwriters and game creators or snug inside any of my favourite Wellington bars, local gin in hand.

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

Something surprising? I have a BFA from Massey here in Wellington and I have exhibited as an artist. My first published novel was adapted into a feature film, which is how I got involved in the NZ film and television industry. I once sang karaoke with Jordan Luck at the Blue Note at 4am, dressed as a pirate.

What exactly do you do day-to-day?

My day job covers a whole range of activities from planning and reporting (Board, MCH and also Parliament through our annual planning and reporting), to overseeing payments, processes and systems to overseeing the financial reviews of funded providers, to making sure our office facilities are up to scratch and are safe and healthy places to work.

During funding rounds my team supports the Funding Team by assessing budgets and I’m one of the Staff Investment Committee decision-makers for applications under $1m, along with my leadership team colleagues. I’ve a great team who look after all the day to day activities for finance, systems and reception.

Stepping into the CE role for some of 2020 is going to be really interesting and exciting – it’s a really different head space and I’m looking forward to the challenge.

What are the biggest challenges in your job?

Not being able to fund all the fantastic ideas we see, juggling the finances to make sure as much of our revenue as possible goes into funding content; and, being accountable as part of the public sector, putting across in corporate documents the importance of what we do.

What’s the bit about your job you love the most?

There’s huge variety in the role, which keeps it really interesting but most of all, seeing funded content come to life whether it’s an amazing creative story or investigative journalism we’ve funded that generates conversation and debate.

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

Somewhere outdoors – preferably on a trail in the bush or hills. With an ultra-distance trail-running husband, I’ve spent a lot of time being support crew at races or being abandoned at weekends. Some of this has rubbed off on me so I also love being out on the trails and sneak off for a (much shorter) trail run myself when I can. I enjoy the challenge, the scenery and generally being outside

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

I’ve been learning Te Reo Māori for the last 2 years, which is an amazing journey to be on and I have a long, long way to go. Heoi anō, now I’ve taken the first steps, I’m loving it. For anyone wanting to learn more Te Reo Māori, patua te whakamā, ā, karawhiua. If you want to kōrero mai i te reo Māori, tau kē and I’ll do my best (very slowly) to respond.

What exactly do you do day-to-day?

My day depends on where we are in our seven-week funding cycle. I’m either advising producers as they prepare to submit a funding application to our Scripted and Factual rounds, assessing the applications we’ve received, or working with successful applicants once they’ve received funding. Outside of our usual funding cycles I oversee the tamariki platform HEIHEI and other great initiatives like the RNZ/NZ On Air Joint Innovation Fund.

What are the biggest challenges in your job?

Having a limited pool of funding and an oversupply of great ideas. If we had the pūtea to support every great proposal that came across our desks my job would be a lot easier. It’s never nice breaking the news to a content creator that their project did not get across the line.

What’s the bit about your job you love the most?

I love seeing an audience respond so well to a piece of content that was funded for them. And it’s always great to share the good news with a producer that their project has been funded. And it’s really rewarding to give an applicant a piece of advice that gets their project one step closer to being made. I guess there are many bits of my job that I love.

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

On an overseas holiday that I’ve been spending my work days dreaming about and saving for. I love visiting new places and obsessing over the local food. Recent highlights have been Japan and Vietnam.

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

I wrote my Master’s thesis on the MTV reality series The Hills. A whole 50,000 words. I will talk about it at length without much prompting at parties, so you’ve been warned.

When did you join NZ On Air?

February 2012. It's an easy one for me to remember since my middle kid was born a week after I started, so when people ask how long I’ve been here I just need to remember how old she is.

What exactly do you do day-to-day?

The main part of my job is getting the New Zealand music we fund (and some that we don’t) seen and heard on broadcast platforms. That means I spend a lot of my time meeting with and talking to the playlist curators of radio stations, streaming platforms and any other music media that can help get those songs into the ears of New Zealanders. I also sit on the New Music Singles funding panel and select songs for our New Tracks compilation each month so I'm always listening to new music, good thing I love it!

What are the biggest challenges in your job?

The current music economy is an extremely complex beast so there’s a few to choose from, namely how to help artists get the most out of each release of a New Zealand song, identifying the songs and artists that will impact the biggest audience and how to get te tangata o Aotearoa to identify great songs as New Zealand music. The big challenge for me personally is space, playlists are notoriously tight and extremely competitive, particularly for radio but also for streaming platforms. They're receiving more music than they have space for every week so get New Zealand music prioritised over international tracks can be very tough.

What’s the bit about your job you love the most?

I love music! Not everyone is looking for their new favourite song on the regular but every single person who draws breath has a favourite song (I have no substantiated evidence of this). Being able to be part of that journey for the many humans that live across our motu means there’s plenty about my job to love. If I had to choose one aspect, it has to be the opportunity to be a judge in the national finals of Smokefree Rockquest. This is my eighth year judging the competition and it's usually where I first see the artists that will eventually come through the system. I’ve been lucky enough to see Broods, Robinson, Maala, Alae, Alien Weaponry, Foley, Nomad and a bunch more who are now making music, applying for funding and assuring the strength of the wider New Zealand music economy

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

Love my family! And surfing and skiing (while jamming some choons of course) are my two favourite pastimes so anytime at the beach or up the mountain with the whānau will see me in my happy place.

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

When I was 17 I represented NZ in whitewater slalom kayaking, we competed at the Australian nationals in 1989 where I came 10th.

Lisa has one of the most important jobs at NZ On Air - she makes sure people get paid!

What exactly do you do day-to-day?

I receive a large number of production reports each week and one of my main jobs is ensuring they all comply with their funding contracts as well as resolving any budget issues that may arise with the production company. I also take responsibility over core financial accounting duties, communicating with stakeholders to make sure they meet their milestones and receive their funding on time.

What are the biggest challenges in your job?

As I've developed my career in finance, I've found the specifics of the media industry to be a learning curve. Luckily my team is there to back me up, providing me with strong support, encouragement and information so that we can always meet our goals. Moreover, seeing the content and incredible work done by the production companies I work with daily has allowed me to learn a lot about the industry, honing my instincts and making me proud of the work I do.

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

I enjoy walking and the usual place I go is Tawatawa Reserve near where I live. The view from the hill is always amazing, especially at sunrise and sunsets.

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

I’ve lived in a lot of different cities and countries before I settled in Wellington. I once lived in Canada when I was 9 and learnt classical music, playing piano and flute.

Sophie is our social media guru - she started at NZ On Air in March 2018.

What exactly do you do day-to-day?

My role is to connect audiences in Aotearoa with amazing local content that authentically reflects a range of perspectives and experiences.

I spend the majority of my time creating and sourcing content for our social media channels, newsletters and website. A large part of my role includes managing our website, making sure it stays up-to-date and beautiful, as well as writing media releases and communicating with our internal and external stakeholders.

What are the biggest challenges in your job?

Things happen fast in the world of communications so the immediacy of my job can be challenging, but it also makes for a fun work week with no two days ever being the same.

What’s the bit about your job you love the most?

On the flipside, the front-facing aspect of my job means I often get to hear and re-distribute to our team good news, like a project we’ve funded truly connecting with its audience, be that 500 people or 500,000. It’s a lovely feeling to see and hear the direct impact of your mahi on others. Seeing the overwhelmingly positive responses to projects like Jessica’s Tree or Attitude that we’ve funded and helped promote makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

Anywhere with a nice view, a big mug of tea and a great book.

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

This is utterly unsurprising for anyone who has known me for more than two seconds, but I’m a big fan of dogs, so much so that I devote a decent chunk of time to running an Instagram dedicated to the best and fluffiest. It’s terribly embarrassing and I absolutely love it.

Benedict joined NZ On Air in January 2010 as the TV Funding Coordinator. Since then his role has grown and he is currently the Associate Head of Funding (Business Affairs)

What exactly do you do day-to-day?

I spend half my time reading and assessing the great applications for funding that we get and half my time trouble-shooting.

I oversee the contracting of most of NZ On Air funding, including ensuring that producers have actually met all our funding requirements. I then get involved in monitoring all our funded contracts, particularly when something tricky or unexpected crops up… such as responding to any health and safety incidents which are reported to us.

For the first year of the NZ Media Fund, I particularly enjoyed chairing all the funding team initial assessment meetings. As a funding assessor, I’m often focused on the business case of a potential project. Questions such as: Does it's budget make sense? How large is the likely audience? Is it clear from the proposal how much content, and in what format, will be produced?

What are the biggest challenges in your job? Has it changed over time?

The biggest challenge for me is remembering names. There are so many people who we interact with on a weekly basis, so I apologise to all the Peter’s who I have called John.

I came to NZ On Air with a pretty good knowledge of NZ television, from over a decade working in jobs at places such as Sky TV and Māori Television. However being at NZ On Air has given me wider interaction with the entire local industry. I’m still getting to grips with who’s who in the NZ radio industry, but I’m getting there. I feel lucky to have been part of the NZ On Air digital assessment and contracting team through a period of time where online video has moved from artistic experimentation to a mainstream format.

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

A cinema, or a theatre, seeing something weird. I just love seeing something unexpected, surprising and moving… and that still mostly happens to me at film festivals, comedy festivals and Bats Theatre in Wellington. It has the added bonus of me generally knowing who actors/writers/directors are when producers pitch them to us as new talent.

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

I still very occasionally hear my 8-year-old voice on RNZ National, as I spent a few hours in an Auckland studio in the early 1980s saying things like “wow”, “tell us another story” or “that’s amazing”. I think it was for the Erratic Attic Radio Show, because I still have a badge they gave me at the time.

Hilaire Carmody joined NZ On Air in January 2018 - with the big job of keeping our Chief Executive in line.

How is your job of EA to the CEO different to previous jobs? I’ve previously been working in the not for profit sector, where we rely on funding to achieve our mission. Sometimes it can be a daunting and relentless task to keep asking for money. It’s great to be on the other side knowing that every day my organisation is helping New Zealanders create the amazing content that they’ve been working hard to make a reality.

What are the biggest challenges in your job? This role requires a lot of juggling, there are always multiple priorities that need to be met. I often feel like my head is a web browser with about 50 tabs open at once.

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why? During the day searching through op-shop and vintage stores for great bargains. I’m rather chuffed that our office is across the road from a terrific Salvation Army store. During the night, down at the Fringe Bar on Allen street, it’s my favourite venue. There is always an interesting show with hot new talent on stage; be it burlesque, comedy or live music.

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you? I used to fly and have proudly landed a prop plane at Rongotai / Wellington Airport – apparently it’s listed as the 15th most scariest airport to land in the world. I figure if I can achieve that, I can achieve anything I set my mind to.

Nicole comes from a broadcasting background, and a well-connected family.

What’s your role?

I am the Funding Advisor for Community Broadcasting. I look after Spoken Radio, Access Radio, Pacific Radio and Regional Media.

How is it different to your roles prior to joining NZ On Air?

This is a totally different role to the ones I’ve previously had. I come from a broadcasting background, 14 years behind the mic and later behind the scenes as an operations manager. I really enjoy this role because it challenges me. One day I could be writing papers recommending funding for some great Kiwi content, the next I could be meeting with one of my awesome stakeholders watching a poetry recital in beautiful Dunedin! It’s a wonderful role that makes me feel good about the work I do to get Kiwi content funded.

What are you finding the biggest challenges of both settling in and delivering the new strategy and processes?

I had big shoes to fill coming into this role as the previous Community Broadcasting manager was well respected and loved by our stakeholders. The wonderful thing about our stakeholders though, is that they are all amazing people and I get phone calls just to chat or received lovely welcoming emails which made my transition less daunting.

As for the new strategy, this is an exciting time for NZ On Air. The technology age is well and truly upon us and NZ On Air have embraced it and are adapting to meet the rapidly changing environment. The NZ Media fund continues to champion NZ content and content makers. As the funder we want all our providers, producers and musicians to succeed - when you succeed we succeed!

When you’re not at work what’s your favourite place to be and why?

My favourite place is anywhere with my two kids Arty (6) and Senara (5) and my partner Hannay. My kids are my world and it could be us lounging around at home watching Moana for the 100th time or down at the local court shooting some hoops with them.

What’s something surprising people won’t know about you?

I am 125,233th in line to the British throne. The Queen is a great Aunty and Will and Harry my cuzzie bros. My great great great grandfather is King George III (yes the mad one!) In a nutshell he had three sons to Hannah Lightfoot, a seamstress, before marrying Queen Charlotte. Hannah and her sons were exiled and given the last name Rex. One settled in Tasmania in Australia and his grandson came to a little Island in the South Pacific (best island, btw) called Niue. He settled in Niue and the rest is history!

P.S I dropped the ‘Princess’ title back in the 90s but if you must…'Your highness' is fine ;)