Council wants special earthquake laws to be used to fast-track film studios in Christchurch

Supplied

The South Island is a popular location for shooting films, including The Luminaries, but all production has to be done in Auckland or Wellington. There are no film studios in the South Island.

Using emergency earthquake laws to make it easier for film studios to be built in Christchurch has received city council backing.

The city does not have a dedicated film studio, despite the South Island being used extensively for locations for filming, but Auckland and Wellington do. Christchurch City Council wants to change that.

On Thursday, the council decided to throw its support behind a move by rebuild agency Regenerate Christchurch to ask Christchurch Regeneration Associate Minister Poto Williams to change the planning rules.

The city’s district plan does not expressly state that permanent film studios are permitted activities in commercial, industrial and rural zones.

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The changes, if approved by Williams, would make commercial film or video production a permitted activity in those zones, removing the need to apply for a resource consent.

City councillor and part-time actor/writer Aaron Keown said this was a fantastic opportunity for the city because film studios had the potential to provide jobs and inject a lot of money into the economy.

“We need jobs for industry professionals working outside of Christchurch to come home and for young people living here.”

The film industry was worth about $3 billion to the nation’s economy but Christchurch took just 1.5 per cent of that, he said.

“The best locations are in the South Island but we don’t have the infrastructure to back it up.”

Keown said he knew of two film studio projects being considered for Christchurch.

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Jordan Mauger wants to create a film studio at the old Templeton Hospital near Christchurch.

One of them is being promoted by Jordan Mauger, who wants to develop a film studio at the former Templeton Hospital on the outskirts of Christchurch. The site would be covered by the proposed planning change.

His father, city councillor Phil Mauger, did not take part in the discussion or vote at the council.

Jordan Mauger first raised the idea of creating a film studio on the former Templeton Hospital land, owned by his family’s company in 2013, but the proposal has only recently gained serious momentum.

The plan has been submitted to the Government for funding as part of its call for “shovel ready” projects to kickstart the country’s economy.

If the project did not get Government money, it would still happen, but at a slower pace, Mauger said, because he would have to find keen investors.

The cost of the project would depend on the size of the studio and could range from $10m to $100m.

Christchurch documentary film maker Gerard Smyth has questioned whether Templeton is the right place to put a film studio.

He wants the council to complete a study to decide where the best location would be before supporting Mauger’s proposal.

Smyth said he was concerned about the site’s proximity to flight paths, and that it was not close to restaurants and accommodation.

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