Unitec School of Creative Industries

Unitec's Year 2 Acting production of D.W Gregory's Radium Girls ended on Sunday after a successful six-show season from 26-29 September. The show was well attended with full houses for the opening three shows at TAPAC (The Auckland Performing Arts Centre) including a schools matinee attended by students from Westlake Boys High and Mt Roskill Grammar Schools. Feedback from audiences was also glowing. Our acting students earned praise for their performances under the astute direction of Cherie Moore. Audience member described the show as an "outstanding production, faces of the future...loved it," with another adding: "The super-talented and multi-role-playing cast were a credit to the Unitec-Te Pūkenga Performing & Screen Arts programme". Congratulations to our acting tauira, Cherie Moore and the rest of the crew and tutors involves in this amazing production.

Dilworth School visited the School of Creative Industries at Unitec today and our team hosted the group to a two hour filmmaking workshop in our film studio as their students explored our offerings in the creative industries. They had a great time getting their hands on the equipment and trying their hand at crewing a film shoot.

Unitec tauira and kaimahi gathered on Wednesday 18 September at Toi o Wairaka gallery for an Artist Floor Talk for the Unpopular Mechanics exhibition currently open for public viewing until 26 September. The Unpopular Mechanics artist floor talk was facilitated by the exhibition’s curator Emma Smith, who was joined by Unitec alumni artists Reece King, Kenneth Merrick, and Kirsten Roberts who discussed their work.

TWO MORE WEEKS UNTIL OPENING NIGHT!
Have you got your tickets to Unitec School of Creative Industries's stage production of Radium Girls by D.W. Gregory? Tickets are selling fast so don't wait, book now!

Ft. Year 2 Unitec Acting Students
Directed by Cherie Moore

26-29 September 2024, TAPAC (The Auckland Performing Arts Centre), Western Springs Auckland

Tickets at iTICKET https://www.iticket.co.nz/events/2024/sep/radium-girls

Radium Girls by D.W. Gregory is based on a true story of one woman’s fight for justice. It’s 1926. Radium is the new miracle cure for anything, Madame Curie is a global sensation, and luminous watches are all the rage - until the young women who paint them start to fall mysteriously ill. Grace, a dial painter, battles her former employee in court. Can she prove that the very element hailed for its medical marvels is causing a devastating illness? Will she see justice for herself and her friends before time runs out? Radium Girls fiercely examines the commercialization of science, the pursuit of both health and wealth, and the power of the underdog.\

Watch our promo video: https://vimeo.com/1008238015?share=copy

An Amateur Production or Community Theatre production of Radium Girls by special arrangement with Unitec and The Play Bureau.

Unitec presents Radium Girls 2024 - Promo Unitec presents Radium Girls 2024 - Promo by D.W. Gregory Featuring Year 2 Acting Students Directed by Cherie Moore 26-29 September 2024, TAPAC, Western Springs…

RAFFLE!!! RAFFLE!!!
Please support Year 3 Acting GRAD FILMS 🎥

An opportunity for you to donate to the year three Unitec Acting graduation films 🎥 We can’t wait to make films that are fresh, fun, diverse, meaningful and relevant. We have organised a raffle so you can help us create the magic 🪄

Along with supporting up and coming artists in Tāmaki Makaurau you have the opportunity to win some epic prizes thanks to our sponsors:
🧡rnartin.nz
🧡.mtalbert
🧡
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🧡.akl
🧡Magical Moments Face Painting ()
🧡
🧡

The first prize is valued at OVER $650
And the second prize has some epic prizes for you to enjoy valued over $100 🔥

First entry = $10
Every entry after this = $5

This will be drawn Sunday 15th September 💃

We love you, thank you ❤️‍🔥

FYI; any left over money from our gradfilm fund will be donated to the years below to keep the aroha flowing 🧡🤝

Celebrating artistic excellence at the opening of Unpopular Mechanics exhibition at Toi o Wairaka gallery B108 Te Putahi Unitec on Thursday night, featuring works by Unitec School of Creative Industries alumni Alyssa Beckwith, Reece King, Kenneth Merrick, Kirsten Roberts, Tira Walsh and Unitec lecturer Emma Smith — curated by Emma Smith.

Huge thanks to all the creatives, whānau, industry guests, colleagues, and students who came out to support!

Unpopular Mechanics:
📅 5th - 26th September
📍 Toi o Wairaka
🕒 Mon - Fri, 9:30am - 4:30pm

Opening night of coLAB 2 last night was amazing. Don’t miss our Year 2 tauira in their choreographic showcase. Four more shows at .nz in Glen Eden 4-7 September. Get your tickets from http://www.iticket.co.nz/events/2024/sep/colab-2

Photos by

A story of obsession and wrath, sunsets and showdowns, told through the live musical stylings of the inimitable 2021 Unitec acting graduate, Laika Loveheart, The Ballad of The Duct Tape Cowboy and Six Shot Cinderella is an unforgettable experience coming to the Basement Theatre from 12-14 September. Directed by Unitec alumni Jessica Bennett and Danielle Nicholson, the show is premiering as part of Auckland Fringe, and is told through a new collection of songs from folk rock artist Laika Loveheart, and is supported by projected visuals and some fabulous cowboy hats.

There was huge interest in Unitec School of Creative Industries offerings during Unitec Open Day on Saturday 31 August with hundreds turning up to our Mt Albert campus. Our beautifully branded Creative Industries stand in Te Puna was extremely busy while the guided tours of our facilities in Building 108 proved popular and a clincher for many learners and their families who braved the inclement weather to explore their options in art, acting, design, dance, digital media and film. Our students were a hit with our visitors thriving in conversations sharing their experiences as Unitec tauira. Initial data insights and leads gathered on the day will help us to support learners with their decisions and inform our recruitment efforts, and improve engagement moving forward. Well done and thank you to all our kaimahi and tauira for their mahi and making Unitec Open Day a huge success. Nga mihi nui.

Thinking of a career in art, acting, dance, design, digital media or film? Come to Unitec Mt Albert campus tomorrow Saturday 31 August from 10am-2pm for Unitec Open Day and explore your options at Unitec School of Creative Industries. Our team will be here to answer all your questions and we’ll take you on a guided tour of our facilities in Building 108. Chat with our current students and find out what life is like at Unitec. We look forward to meeting you.

Mālō e lelei! Uike Kātoanga’i ‘o e lea faka-Tonga – Happy Tongan Language Week!

Our diverse cohort of acting students from Unitec's School of Creative Industries celebrated Tongan Language Week by learning some Tongan phrases and words in class this week.

This aligns with this year's theme for Tonga Language Week 'E tu'uloa 'a e lea faka-Tongá 'o ka lea'aki 'i 'api, siasí (lotú), mo e nofo-'a-kaingá - which means The Tongan Language will be sustainable when used at home, church and in the wider community.

Watch Unitec's acting students celebrate Tongan Language Week here: https://vimeo.com/1001837124?share=copy

Unitec Students Unitec Student Council

Malo e lelei! Happy Tongan Language Week from Unitec Creative Industries 2024 Malo e lelei! Happy Tongan Language Week from Unitec Creative Industries 2024

We can't wait for our Unitec School of Creative Industries Year 2 Dance tauira to open their much anticipated choreographic showcase coLAB 2 at Glen Eden Playhouse Theatre on Wednesday, 4 September 2024. coLAB 2 is an exciting selection of original choreographies, which express the depth of choreographic and technical excellence for which Unitec dancers are celebrated.

Seven amazing new works will be performed which promises to be an evolving feast of live movement, sound and design, and will once again showcase Unitec Dance’s energy, diversity, joy, and mahi kotahitanga in Contemporary Dance choreography and performance.

There are only four evening shows from 4-7 September all starting at 7:30pm so get your tickets now from iTICKET . This show is not to be missed!

Get a sneak peek at the rehearsals in our coLAB 2 promo video https://vimeo.com/1001365457

Buy tickets here: http://www.iticket.co.nz/events/2024/sep/colab-2

Unitec Dance presents coLAB 2 2024 promo video Unitec Dance presents coLAB 2 2024 promo video

Congratulations to our Unitec School of Creative Industries: Master of Creative Practice tauira Atarangi Anderson (pictured far left) and Matthew Joils (2nd from right) who were presented with senior scholar awards at Unitec's Masters' Research Excellence Awards in Toi o Wairaka Gallery, B108 on Wednesday, 21 August. The presentation of awards was well attended by family and friends of the recipients as well as kaimahi and kaiako from across Unitec. The awards are an acknowledgement of Unitec students who have achieved the highest standard of research excellence in their Master’s thesis of an A+ grade. Nga mihi nui.

Great news with Design Discipline Lead/Lecturer Jonty Valentine, 2023 Bachelor of Creative Enterprise alumni, Daimler Arcega, and graduating design student, Keagan Skelton have all been named as finalists for this year’s prestigious Best Design Awards — an incredible achievement for our Design and Contemporary Art team. Here are the projects they have been recognised for:

Keagan Skelton (supervised by Jonty Valentine)
Gold Sand: A Commonplace Book
https://bestawards.co.nz/graphic/student-academic-graphics/keagan-skelton/gold-sand-a-commonplace-book/

Jonty Valentine
Newspaper Design - 02
https://bestawards.co.nz/graphic/editorial-and-books/unitec-nz/02/

Daimler Arcega (supervised by Design lecturer, Cris De Groot)
Qwerky Universe
https://bestawards.co.nz/product/student-academic-product/daimler-arcega/qwerky-universe/

The Best Awards Event is scheduled for 11 October in Auckland where the winners are officially announced. Established in the 1970s, The Best Design Awards is brought to you by The Designers Institute of New Zealand, and is an annual showcase of excellence in graphic, spatial, product, digital and motion design along with three special awards - Value of Design, Public Good and Toitanga.

Find out more about the Best Awards
https://bestawards.co.nz/

The opening of the Master of Creative Practice exhibition at Toi o Wairaka gallery B108 on Thursday evening was attended by the artists, friends and family, as well as kaimahi and tauira. All exhibits are either finished works or works in process.

Exhibition dates: 15th – 22nd August 9:30am-4:30pm Mon-Fri.
Toi o Wairaka Gallery – B108 School of Creative Industries, Unitec

Featuring works and works in process of:
Francesca Ayers
Alyssa Beckwith
Mahsa Kheirkhah
Tonina Mata Ngatai
Karlene Mathieson
Martino Michael
Kate Silver
Alex Watene

You’re invited to attend a selection of our Masters of Creative Practice students works from their ICIB9003 course work at various stages of their creative research projects.

Opening: this Thursday 15th August 4 – 6pm

Exhibition dates: 15th – 22nd August
Toi o Wairaka Gallery – B108 School of Creative Industries, Unitec

Featuring works and works in process of:
Francesca Ayers
Alyssa Beckwith
Mahsa Kheirkhah
Tonina Mata Ngatai
Karlene Mathieson
Martino Michael
Kate Silver
Alex Watene

We are proud of 2008 Unitec Creative Industries (Performing & Screen Arts) alumni Josephine Stewart-Te Whiu's (Ngāpuhi, Te Rarawa) new feature film We Were Dangerous, which opened the 2024 Whānau Mārama New Zealand Film Festival Trust New Zealand International Film Festival (NZIFF) 2024 at Auckland's Civic Theatre last week. The film won the top award at the recent South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival in the USA.

The film's strong Unitec connection is reflected by six wahine who are current or recent alumni from the acting programme who provided backing vocals for the film: Year 3 acting students Michaela MacFarlane, Olivia McIntyre, and 2023 alumni Jessica Fajardo, Abby Ozanne, Shannon Freeman and Sofie Boyes.

The film's story focuses on a rebellious trio of girls railing against the system in 1950s New Zealand. “It’s about rebelling, girlhood, seeing ourselves onscreen,” Stewart-Te Whiu told the NZ Herald. The story is timely as the country grapples with how it handled “problems” in the past and now. Josephine's directorial debut feature is set for release nationwide on August 22. Go see this amazing film! (photo credit: Piki Films, NZIFF)

Read the review https://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/we-were-dangerous-short-sharp-debut-feature-packs-a-powerful-punch/MOX27Q34EREZPFZLL3P7KPO6NM/

Watch the trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0mRPMX-WCc&t=9s

Friends, whānau and Unitec tauira and kaimahi gathered at Unitec School of Creative Industries' Toi o Wairaka Gallery in Building 108 on Wednesday, 7 August 2024, for the final examination and exhibition opening of Master of Creative Practice tauira, Antonina Mata Ngatai. The presence of four generations of Antonina's whānau made the occasion extra special for the artist whose work honours that whakapapa (genealogy), her whenua, and iwi (Ngāti Whakaue, Te Arawa). Antonina's master's research: Toi Ki Roto, Toi Ki Waho - Art In, Art Out: Breathing Through Contemporary Art Practices as Rongoa (Healing) Embedded in Kaupapa Māori Methodologies is available for public viewing until this Friday, 9 August within the Gallery’s open hours Monday-Friday 9.30-4.30pm. The exhibition ends a remarkable journey for Antonina at Unitec after previously completing a diploma in contemporary music and Bachelor of Creative Enterprise before embarking on her master's studies.

Unitec School of Creative Industries hosted close to 100 international agents last Friday, 2 August with the visitors taken on a guided tour of Building 108 - Te Pūtahi. They were visibily impressed by our facilities, especially the Toi o Wairaka Gallery, Makers Space, Art House, Mac Labs and Film Studio and the cross-disciplinary, studio-based learning environment of our ākonga. It is the full integration of our offerings and the interdisciplinary approach and collaboration which position us strongly in the international student market.

You’re invited to attend Unitec School of Creative Industries student, Antonina Mata Ngatai’s Master of Creative Practice examination and exhibition.

Toi Ki Roto, Toi Ki Waho - Art In, Art Out

Breathing Through Contemporary Art Practices as Rongoa (Healing) Embedded in Kaupapa Maori Methodologies

Examination: Wednesday 7 August, 2pm - Toi o Wairaka Gallery, Building 108, Entry 4, Carrington Rd,

Please feel free to attend Tonina’s examination event. If you are attending the examination please observe the start time.

If you can’t attend the examination, you can see Tonina’s body of work from the 5–9 August within the Gallery’s open hours from Monday-Friday 9.30am-4.30pm.

coLAB 2 featuring our awesome second year tauira in their choreographic showcase, opens next month from 4-7 September at .nz in Glen Eden. Don’t miss this amazing show. Tickets 🎟 are now ON SALE at http://www.iticket.co.nz/events/2024/sep/colab-2 link in our bio.

Unitec School of Creative Industries’ new Semester Two student cohort in the Bachelor of Design and Contemporary Art (BDCA) were treated to a guided tour and induction to Unitec’s multi-purpose Library in Te Puna. Facilitated by our wonderful Creative Industries and Pacific Subject Librarian, Sana Saleem, the tour introduced the students to our study facilities, student support services, and hangout areas, to ensure our tauira have the wrap around support they need to support them in their student journey at Unitec.

The weather may have been cold and wet outside, but the vibe at Building 108 - Te Putahi Unitec was warm and inviting with a delicious BBQ lunch served up for our Unitec School of Creative Industries students on Tuesday. Many hands make light work so thanks 🙏 to our kaimahi who gave a helping hand and to all our tauira for showing up and enjoying each other’s company - a great time of whakawhanaungatanga and sharing of kai. A great way to start Semester two. Nga mihi nui.