Saturday, 18th July 2026 at the Capitol Cinema in Auckland
Fabian Wagner ASC BSC, who was recently the cinematographer in NZ on the “Obsidian” feature film, recently shared with Kiwi HODs, producers and crews his desire to see film crews globally support gender equality and cultural diversity.
Fabian is an acclaimed cinematographer known for his striking visual storytelling and atmospheric imagery across film and television. Best known for his work on Game of Thrones where he earned Emmy recognition for the iconic “Battle of the Bastards” episode, Wagner has built a reputation for crafting immersive, cinematic worlds through bold composition and dynamic lighting. His credits span major productions including Zack Snyder’s Justice League, Sherlock, The Crown, and House of the Dragon, showcasing a versatile style that blends technical precision with emotional depth, and jumping between big Hollywood blockbusters and smaller more independent movies.
The first session with Fabian was moderated by DP Bayley Broome-Peake, where we were shown clips of his work, and introduced to his First Steps Cinematography mission, which is to provide opportunities for individuals from all walks of life to enter the camera, lighting and grip departments. Now in its 13th year, the main focus is promoting diversity and gender equality, regardless of age or experience, with the aim of creating a more diverse and inclusive industry, and investing in the future by prioritising the growth and development of aspiring filmmakers. Fabian was highly impressed with the calibre of crew and interns that were brought onto the Auckland production, but expressed a frustration that he was not initially exposed to a wider range of gender-balanced potential crew when he was gearing up in pre-production.
After a short break, WIFT NZ executive officer Patricia Watson, gave a background to the challenges and progress made in our gender equality in our local industry, and introduced the panel discussion topic, which was moderated by Assistant Director Louise Spraggon.
A select group of tech crew who had recently been interns and attachments on the Obsidian project spoke to their own experiences, shared their insights and analysed the state of the NZ industry - where we have come from, where we are, and what our desire for a more equitable NZ crew looks like in the future?
Many thanks to our panel of Tammy Williams, Nani Conforte, Hweiling Ow, and Felila Matafeo. Also to Kate Cresswell, Uplift Co-ordinator for Portal Productions and WIFT NZ for making this a thought provoking and insightful afternoon collaboration with the NZCS.
Donny Duncan NZCS - Professional Development Manager
Photo Credits - Murray Milne NZCS
