1. Can Peter Jackson or Lars von
Trier be seen to have had a
greater influence on their
national film industries
funding institutions?

2. - Introduction to the Danish and New Zealand film industries
- Background on Lars von Trier and Peter Jackson
- Their influence on national funding initiatives
- Conclusion
‘His arrival on the scene has dominated to such an extent that in most people's
perception, New Zealand film industry means Peter Jackson’
(The New Zealand Herald, 2014)
'In the case of von Trier … there is genuine reason to doubt whether talk of a
Danish model (or miracle, as some journalists would have it) would even be
possible without his galvanising presence'
(Hjort, 2007, p. 32)

4. 'Danish cinema was once truly great,
and recognised as such worldwide'
(Hjort, p. 23)

5. Film act of 1964:
- Creation of a film fund
- Formalised government support for film
Film act of 1972:
- To qualify for state support, films must be in the
Danish language
1972 Formation of the Danish Film Institute (DFI):
- Organisational support tool for all Danish national
films
- Responsible for allocating subsidies
- Operation of support programmes including film
education

6. 1984 directed The Element of Crime
- First feature film
- Winner of 12 awards
Awards to date:
- 89 wins and a further 75 nominations
1991 directed Europa
- Winner of 3 awards at Cannes
but not the Palme d’Or
- Walked away in frustration

7. '… raged against the unrealistic plotlines and
overwrought visuals of mainstream cinema'
(Kingsley, 2012)

8. '… raged against the unrealistic plotlines and
overwrought visuals of mainstream cinema'
(Kingsley, 2012)
'Dogme’s most obvious accomplishment then was that it
directed international focus to new Danish cinema,
branding Denmark as a film nation in a way not seen
before’
(Schepelern, 2013)
‘… one of the most important events in the European film
history of the 20th century’
(Volk, 2005)

9. 1989 Film Act
- Now films would be able to apply for DFI support if
they made a clear artistic or technical contribution
to Danish film art and culture.
- Lars von Trier’s film from 1984 was refused DFI
support for its use of English and German

10. 1989 Film Act
- Now films would be able to apply for DFI support if
they made a clear artistic or technical contribution
to Danish film art and culture.
- Lars von Trier’s film from 1984 was refused DFI
support for its use of English and German
Danish Film Institute negotiations
- An additional 59 million Euros for Danish film support
- Considerable power for negotiation thanks in part to
the international recognition of the Dogme movement
and Lars von Trier’s The Idiots (1998)

11. New Zealand

12. 1978 - Formation of the New Zealand Film Commission
- … growth in the New Zealand film industry…. We
want New Zealand films and filmmaking talent to
be seen and valued by local and international
audiences’ (NZFC, 1978)
- Fewer than 20 features made in the preceding 30
years to their introduction.
- But in 36 years of operation more than 300 feature
films have been made with either their direct
funding or from grants they administer.

14. LOTR Trilogy box office: $2,911,400,000 Mojo)
King Kong box office: $550,517,357
(Box Office Mojo, 2015)
‘… kind of shunted sideways, because Peter doesn't make
New Zealand films, he makes films for Warner Brothers …
The films he makes have got very little to do with us
culturally’
(Jones, 2014)

15. 2004 - Large Budget Screen Production Grant
- ‘The grant aims to increase economic growth by
providing a financial incentive to attract large scale
screen production to New Zealand, which would be
unlikely to come in the absence of such
incentives' (NZFC, 2009, p. 2)
- Attracted King Kong (2005) and Avatar (2009) and
their resulting spend of $389 million and $307 million
in New Zealand (Brownlee, 2010).

16. 2004 - Large Budget Screen Production Grant
- ‘The grant aims to increase economic growth by
providing a financial incentive to attract large scale
screen production to New Zealand, which would be
unlikely to come in the absence of such
incentives' (NZFC, 2009, p. 2)
- Attracted King Kong (2005) and Avatar (2009) and
their resulting spend of $389 million and $307 million
in New Zealand (Brownlee, 2010).
2009 - Screen Production Incentive Fund (SPIF)
- Support increased production of medium and larger
scale New Zealand cultural screen content, for the
benefit of audiences and to support the retention of
New Zealand screen talent, stories and infrastructure.

17. Conclusion
?

18. Conclusion

19. Filmography
Avatar, James Cameron, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, USA, 2009
Bad Taste, Peter Jackson, New Zealand Film Commission, New Zealand, 1987
Braindead, Peter Jackson, WingNut Films, New Zealand, 1992
Epidemic, Lars von Trier, Elementfilm A/S, Denmark, 1987
Europa, Lars von Trier, Det Danske Filminstitut, Denmark, 1991
Heavenly Creatures, Peter Jackson, WingNut Films, New Zealand, 1994
King Kong, Peter Jackson, Universal Pictures, New Zealand, 2005
Meet the Feebles, Peter Jackson, WingNut Films, New Zealand, 1989
The Element of Crime, Lars von Trier, Danish Film Institute, Denmark, 1984
The Idiots, Lars von Trier, Zentropa Entertainments, Denmark, 1998
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Peter Jackson, New Line Cinema,
New Zealand, 2001
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Peter Jackson, New Line Cinema, New
Zealand, 2003
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Peter Jackson, New Line Cinema, New
Zealand, 2002

20. Bibliography
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After-The-Celebration.aspx [accessed December 2014]
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news/media-releases/detail/2010/01/24/avatar-delivers-$307m-to-new-zealand-economy [accessed December 2014]
‘Danish Film History: 1970-1979’, Danish Film Institute Website,
http://www.dfi.dk/Service/English/Films-and-industry/Danish-Film-History/1970-1979.aspx [accessed December 2014]
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‘Evaluation of the Large Budget Screen Production Grant’, Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment Website, (2012), http://
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%20the%20NZ%20film%20industry.pdf [accessed December 2014]
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Jacka, Elizabeth., 'Australian cinema', in John Hill and Pamela Church Gibson, World Cinema Critical Approaches (Oxford: Oxford
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21. Bibliography
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