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\nAn empty studio at Auckland Film Studios in Henderson.
\nPhoto: PHIL GREGORY\n<\/p>\n
Auckland Council has sold the city’s biggest film studio to a private company.<\/p>\n
Dozens of major films, including Minecraft and Predator Badlands, were filmed at the long running Auckland Film Studios.<\/p>\n
Auckland’s mayor Wayne Brown confirmed Xytech, an Auckland lighting supplier turned major industry player, had bought the studios for an undisclosed price.<\/p>\n
“This is a win for our region’s outstanding screen production industry. Paired with Auckland’s stunning scenery it will increase the appeal of Auckland to a global screen industry,” he said in a statement.<\/p>\n
“This is a good move that also delivers for ratepayers. We’ll be handing this over to a seasoned operator, and that’s where it should be.”<\/p>\n
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\nAuckland mayor Wayne Brown
\nPhoto: MARIKA KHABAZI \/ RNZ\n<\/p>\n
The sale, which will be settled on 27 February, came after the central government invested $30 million in the studio to build a pair of new sound stages in 2022.<\/p>\n
In a statement, the council said it couldn’t confirm the sale price, but said the government’s $30m contribution would come back to the council to be held in a fund to reinvest in further screen infrastructure.<\/p>\n
The terms of the sale would also require the site to remain a film studio for at least 10 years.<\/p>\n
Auckland-based Xytech has grown into a major supplier of lighting and other film equipment for productions in the southern hemisphere since its founding in 1997, and opened its own X3 Studios in Wiri in 2020.<\/p>\n
‘Incredibly positive for the industry’ – line producer<\/p>\n
Katie Kempe, the line producer on Amazon’s The Wrecking Crew which released this week and was partially filmed at Auckland Film Studios, said Xytech and founder Stephen Pryor had a very positive reputation in the sector.<\/p>\n
“I think it’s incredibly positive for the industry. I think what Stephen has done is incredibly admirable, because it’s not without risk,” she said.<\/p>\n
“You can see how much they believe in the industry and we need more supporters and advocates to help grow this infrastructure.”<\/p>\n
She admitted being surprised by the announcement of the sale, but said she soon realised it was “a natural fit”.<\/p>\n
“I don’t think that there’s any other group that has extended themselves so positively into the industry for the good of the industry.”<\/p>\n
‘I have a deep passion for film-making in New Zealand’ – Pryor<\/p>\n
Stephen Pryor told RNZ owning the studio had been a long term goal.<\/p>\n
“I personally have been involved in the film industry for a little over 30 years and I first worked at what is now known as Auckland Film Studios on The Tommyknockers as a unit driver,” he explained.<\/p>\n
“I started Xytech as an equipment rental company back in 1997 and we’ve grown to be one of the largest equipment suppliers to film and TV productions, and we’ve also had a long history with property and providing studio and property resources to the film industry.”<\/p>\n
Pryor said he first bid on Auckland Film Studios in 2011, and had continued making offers since.<\/p>\n
“It’s been a bit of a journey over the last 15 years, over that time I’ve put a couple of offers in to the council,” he said.<\/p>\n
“[The council] started a formal process about four years ago where the film studios were put up for sale and they did a marketing campaign both domestically and internationally to find a studio operator with history in operating film studios that also had financial resilience.”<\/p>\n
Pryor seized that opportunity.<\/p>\n
“The main reason is I have a deep passion for film-making in New Zealand and studio infrastructure is very important for attracting international productions.”<\/p>\n
But there were also financial incentives, he explained.<\/p>\n
“It’s also very important, from our perspective, that in studios you need lots of lights, and we have lots of lights to put up in studios, so there is a natural synergy between the equipment rental side and also the studio infrastructure side,” he said.<\/p>\n
Though the deal with Auckland Council only required the site to continue as a film studio for 10 years, Pryor intended to keep it running much longer.<\/p>\n
“I’ve been in the film industry for 30 years, I have plans to celebrate my company’s 50th anniversary which is in about 20 years time and I fully intend to be running film studios and equipment rentals [then].<\/p>\n
“Over time, and with the likes of AI and what-have-you, it may be that we have to re-look at things at some point in time, but I would certainly hope that in my lifetime it will continue to be run as film studios.”<\/p>\n