by Debbie Jamieson — 23 MARCH 2023
A whiskey distillery in Cromwell and a film studio in Wānaka have been promised government support to diversify beyond tourism. Regional Development Minister Kiri Allan announced a $2.9 million loan to help Scapegrace Distillery expand. $4.5m of funding for Silverlight Studios’ film studio project. Silverlight Studios chief executive Mike Wallis stated that concerns about the company’s $280m Wānaka plan, which includes ten sound studios, had been raised. The sound stages, which are fully sound-proofed and include lighting rigs, will come from Belgium and are already being used by Netflix and Amazon. Allan said the screen industry employed 16,200 New Zealanders and contributed $3.3 billion annually to the economy.
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