It might be found at the bottom of the globe, but New Zealand has been at the top of the movie industry in 2020.

Thanks to its handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, the country is enjoying an unprecedented boom in film production, with directors seeking safe conditions, and that most elusive thing this year – a normal life.

International blockbusters including James Cameron’s Avatar sequels, Amazon’s Lord of the Rings series and Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog – starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Kirsten Dunst – all managed complex film shoots in New Zealand this year.

The country’s home-grown movies have also received a boost at the box office by Kiwis supporting their industry, leading one local filmmaker to joke that they’re now living in “the Hollywood of the Pacific”.

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