Film & TV Maker
Television
I started out as an editor in Scotland before moving to New Zealand and pursuing writing, directing and producing. I've made all kinds of factual shows including current affairs, documentary, reality, science, consumer and nature.
This page is by no means exhaustive. Follow the links at the bottom to see a more complete list of credits.
Grand Designs NZ
Director
Imagination TV
I'm currently making this little legend of prime time.
Asia's Weirdest
Series Producer
For Nat Geo/NHNZ
What an absolute joy this series was. My first series producer job. We pushed this format in every direction we could, giving it a really distinctive voice and retro styling. I set out to dance on that bright line of anthropomorphisation - using it to help the audience connect with the animal characters (and through them the majesty of nature), while making it absurd enough that no-one is ever in any doubt that we're being silly. A highly motivated and talented crew grabbed the opportunity to contribute to a very special show.
Titanic: 25 Years Later with James Cameron
Jim wanted to find out if Jack could really have survived if he'd just hopped on the door beside Rose. So we recreated the scenario under controlled conditions and froze the living bejesus out of some stunties. Great fun.
Segment Director
National Geographic
Ocean's Weirdest
Series Producer
For Nat Geo/NHNZ
Same but different. Weirdness is basically another name for unfamiliarity and because the ocean is such a different environment from the one we evolved in, there are an awful lot of adaptations that seem very weird indeed - like having a fish living up your bum, eating explosive devices and storing them in your skin or having a four metre long penis.
Jackie Chan's Green Heroes
Director/Producer
For Nat Geo/NHNZ
Jackie and his inventor mate Arthur head to the Tibetan Plateau to test a mobile recycling plant and we went along with them. There was altitude sickness -16 degrees Celcius and the unbelievable mania that follows Jackie's star power. It all resulted in a great show and an unforgettable experience.
Ever Wondered?
Director
For TVNZ7/BUTO
This was the first series that I directed and it was absolutely wonderful. The turnaround was insane but I got to learn a whole lot of great stuff that I then had to try and communicate to the audience. Here's a clip about game theory.
Inside The Pack
Director/Producer
For Nat Geo/NHNZ
This was a special I wrote and post-produced - and I thought it was very special indeed. On the surface it was an exciting tale of the blood-soaked adventures of social predators like lions and hyenas, but underneath it had a lot to say about how intelligence and sociality often evolve together and lead to pain as well as parties.
Wild 24
Director
For Nat Geo/NHNZ
I made a ton of these shows - 24 hours in the lives of animals in a given location. Some of my best writing was done here.
Campbell Live - Bohs
Reporter/Director
For TV3/Campbell Live
The first thing I ever directed for TV! Way back in about 2007, I think. Credit to the EP Carol Hirschfeld for letting me do it. I still think it's a pretty good yarn.
Target
Segment Director/Producer
For TV3/Top Shelf
Don't laugh, but I really enjoyed directing the product check segment on this show. I had no budget (I could usually shake about $150 out of the producer for props and a smoke machine) but a lot of freedom. Follow the link to some of the opening segments and you can see how much fun I had.
I also put a lot of effort into ensuring that my assessments of the products were based on really good research and contained genuinely useful info for the consumer... so it wasn't all men in cat suits and hula girls.