Zip on your best clapping hands, firm up your stomping boots and dive down the back of the couch for a handful of loose change. Then make your way down to the city for the experience of a life time.

The Festival runs from Friday 25 to Monday 28 January 2013. Day shows start every day at 12 noon. Night shows run on Friday, Saturday and Sunday 7.30pm in Market Square, Viaduct Harbour.

Day shows are in Wynyard Quarter and evening shows are in Market Square, Viaduct.

Many young people dream of becoming successful models because of the glamour, fame, travel and money associated with the profession. Young people looking forward to become models need to be encouraged to create a portfolio, adhere to an exercise regimen and enroll in relevant classes. This will get them ready to sign up with proper agencies who can catapult them to pinnacles of success.

A career in modeling:

This career is rewarding because of the many benefits derived from it. However, modeling demands a lot of hard work. Aspiring models should be ready for many ups and downs, including harsh criticism and rejection. Generally, careers for fashion runway and commercial models do not last for long; there is often an age limit. Modeling careers for teenagers can start as early as 15 years. Girls looking for an opportunity to become fashion runway models need to start as early as 15-22 years. On the other hand, boys need to begin their careers when they are between the age of 18 and 25 years.

The fashion industry sets the standards for persons seeking to venture into the industry. Aspiring professional for the runway need to meet a strict set of standards compared to other modeling opportunities. The models are expected to have unique facial features, nice physique and capacity to walk the runway. The least height for aspiring women models is 5’8″ while men need 5’11″. Both commercial and professional runway models do not need a specific credential or degree. Therefore, as long as you have the minimum height, physical features, positive attitude and confidence, you can land yourself a good deal. Nevertheless, attending formal training gives you an advantage.

Preparing your modeling portfolio:

It is important to compile your best photos so that the talent scouts or the modeling agency can refer readily to your past experiences. Therefore, aspiring professionals who have attended relevant training courses stand a better chance of being selected. Your resumé and composite card also need to go with the headshots. Other qualities potential employers look for when they are scouting for talent include a sense of style, dressing up properly, good walking posture, great facial projection, looking good all times, knowledge about the application of make up, capturing different poses and excellent stamina.

To have a successful career on the runway, you must be ready to be flexible, neat, versatile, stylish, hardworking, good at taking instructions and dependable. You also need to learn how to communicate the attitude and emotion of the brand you are promoting. Meanwhile, a good model can wear any type of clothing style and yet look good with every given occasion.

The income derived from a modeling career varies greatly between commercial models and professional runway models. Furthermore, the salaries depend on the modeling engagement, model’s popularity and modeling experience.

By Rajesh B Sanghvi

Audio: New Zealand film industry launches unmanned drones (ABC News)

Map: New Zealand

New Zealand’s Civil Aviation Authority has given local company   Sycamore  Limited permission to fly unmanned aerial vehicles – or UAV’s – above the capital Wellington .

But these pilotless drones aren’t carrying bombs, instead their payload is movie cameras.

Sycamore’s CEO, filmmaker Ben Forman has told Radio Australia’s Pacific Beat that the drones will allow filmmakers to get shots that they can’t get now.

“You’ve got this whole gap between camera jibs where they finish and helicopters can only get so low,” he said of the technology which will target the film industry television and advertising.

The company spent a year trialling the technology and addressing safety concerns.

“We take a very strong interest in safety and everything we do we want to do it in line with the correct legislation and safety procedures,” he said.

The industry is still so recent that new procedures had to be developed for the one-point-four metre wing span craft.

“We’ve had to work with the Civil Aviation Authority to put in place rule and regulations that mean people, just hobbyists can’t grab these things and get them in the air and put lives in danger,” he said.

And with strong growth predicted, Ben Forman predicts the sky is the limit.

“This industry is huge, absolutely massive. There were some predictions that the UAV industry is going to be an $89 billion industry by 2020 which is just absolutely insane,” he said.

We’re over half-way through the year already and it seems a good time to take a quick look back over the past six months. So here are my 12 favourite shows of 2012 (so far). Share your favourites in the comments section, below!

Game of Thrones (SoHo): My favourite show of the year. But at what point do we start questioning how good Thrones is in a historical context? I think we need an inquest and a series of town-hall meetings to decide the order of Thrones, Mad Men, The Sopranos, The Wire, Homeland and Breaking Bad and make an official The Greatest Shows Ever list.

Boss (SoHo): The return of Kelsey Grammer as Chicago mayor Tom Kane went off the boil after a brilliant premiere, but managed to redeem itself with a stunning run of episodes to close out its first season. Martin Donovan also deserves recognition for his portrayal of Ezra Stone, Kane’s senior adviser. Look for Season 2 later this year (hopefully).

Justified (One): The second season of the antics of Raylan Givens was a lot more character-focused, and seemed a lot more serialised, than the first – and it absolutely worked:Timothy Olyphant and Walton Goggins are a great 1-2, whileMargo Martindale and Jeremy Davies were great in supporting roles.

Above Suspicion: Red Dahlia (One): Who said TVNZ don’t show quality British drama anymore?! It was only three episodes long, but this short British series – led by Kelly Reilly and Ciaran Hinds, and created by Lynda La Plante- was gripping, it was dramatic, and it told a helluva story. Plus, it’s the second of four Above Suspicion seasons. More please, TV One!

Homeland (TV3): Damien Lewis and Claire Danes turn in two of the best performances in a serial drama in a decade, while Howard Gordon & Alex Gansa create the first post-post-9/11 television show … umm, whatever that means.

Breaking Bad (Four): We’re just about finished Season 3, with Season 4 following right behind it (and starting with one of the best hours of television you’ll ever see). Though I have to say: Walter White had such noble intentions when he started cooking meth – its amazing that things have got this far out of hand, and it’s been amazing to watch.

The Almighty Johnsons (TV3): The second series gave us more fantasy, more spectacle, and more laughs, while expanding the show’s world beyond the Norse mythology on which it was founded last year. Oh, and for the record, I would totally take Johnsons’ Loki over Avengers’ Loki any day.

Mad Men (SoHo): Thanks to being a little lighter in tone, the fifth season of Mad Men was probably its most fun season to date, not so steeped in the ambiguity and subtext that made the first four seasons such an intense viewing experience. Also, Pete Campbell getting his butt kicked by Lane Pryce was one of the greatest scenes of the year, in any show.

Sherlock (One): Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman as a modern-day Holmes and Watson is just too much fun – and when you factor in that I’m still wracking my brain over that final scene, you have to admit it’s at least one of the most memorable shows of the year (so far).

Hounds (TV3): Is Hounds the best Kiwi comedy ever? Yes. And I’m not just saying that because they quoted me asking that question in a trailer without telling anyone that I said yes, but because it is brilliantly written and shot, hilariously funny but poignant at times too, and has three great leads in Toby Sharpe, Mick Innes and Susana Tang.

Fringe (TV2): What’s not to love about a show that features multiple universes connected via an inter-universal bridge, a mysterious terrorist group known only as shape-shifters, and a former Dawson’s Creek cast member who may or may not actually exist?! When you talk about cleverly written shows, Fringe should be at (or near) the top of your list.

Parks & Recreation (Four): “‘Zerts’ are what I call deserts. ‘Tray-trays’ are what I call entrees. Sandwiches are ‘sammies’, ‘sandoozles’ or ‘Adam Sandlers’, air conditioners are ‘cool blaterz’ with a ‘z’- I don’t know where that came from. I call cakes ‘big ole cookies’; I call noodles ‘long-ass rice’; fried chicken is ‘fry fry chicky chick’; chicken parmesan is ‘chicky chicky parm parm’; chicken cacciatore is ‘chicky catch’; I call eggs ‘pre-birds’ or ‘future birds’; root beer is ‘super water’; tortillas are ‘bean blankets’; and I call forks ‘food rakes’.” – Tom Haverford.

Outrageous Fortune actor Tammy Davis is one step closer to working in Hollywood after his short film was picked as a semi-finalist for the first international Your Film Festival.

The competition is described as a global hunt to find the world’s best storytellers, and Davis’ film Ebony Society has beaten more than 15,000 entries from 160 countries to make the competition’s Top 50 shortlist.

Filmmakers were asked to submit a 15-minute, story-driven video of any format and genre.

After a public vote, the top ten finalists will then screen at the Venice Film Festival and the winner will get to work with the competition’s organiser, director Ridley Scott and Prometheus star Michael Fassbender, and a US$500,000 production grant.

Davis, who played Munter in the hit TV3 series, says it would be a dream to win the competition.

“It would be amazing to win and incredible to work with Ridley Scott and Michael Fassbender.”

Two films from Auckland’s Media Design School, Das Tub and Dr Grordborts Presents: The Deadliest Game, have also made the Top 50.

Both films were created by advanced 3D students during the final stages of their course, and the school’s senior lecturer James Cunningham says the achievement is a testament to the students involved.

“I am very proud of the work the students were able to pull off in such a short time span. Now we need to get the country behind us and get us into Venice!”

The New Zealand Film Commission chief executive Graeme Mason says having three films do so well is a great achievement for local filmmaking.

“It’s fantastic to have three New Zealand films selected as semi-finalists in this prestigious and innovative competition.

The end of New Zealand-filmed TV show Spartacus will be a “major blow” to Kiwi actors, but industry insiders are hopeful other similar projects will be made here soon.

Creator-executive producer Steven S DeKnight told The Hollywood Reporter the hit swords-and-sandals epic would end on a “high note” after only three full series and a prequel season.

“That was part of the decision to wrap up the show: The idea of ending the show when you’re on top and the audience still wants more instead of dragging it out until it starts to wane and you kind of limp to the finish line,” DeKnight said.

New Zealand actors to star in the high-rating show include Lucy Lawless, Anna Hutchison from Go Girls and Craig Parker from Shortland Street and Lord of the Rings.

Anna Majavu of the New Zealand Actors Equity said the series had brought numerous benefits.

“Screen acting work on major series is the only form of stable income for professional actors and the end of Spartacus will be a major blow to New Zealand’s professional actors who have been cast in increasing numbers in core-cast roles.”

New Zealand film crews, extras, stunt people and equipment hire companies would also be affected.

Ms Majavu said appearing on Spartacus, which airs in 150 countries in more than 15 languages, was a great opportunity for Kiwi actors.

“It can catapult them into a big acting career overseas and definitely work in their favour if they want to go work in Australia or LA because it’s an international series.”

New Zealand actor Gareth Williams, who plays the villainous Vettius, said the opportunity to work on a large-scale production like Spartacus was a “helpful stepping stone”.

“It does create opportunities because you can say that you’ve been in an American TV series, which is usually something you have to go to the States to actually do. It’s definitely a big plus that you can do it in your backyard.”

Auckland Actors owner and agent Graham Dunster, who represents Lucy Lawless and other actors in the show, said the producers had been “very happy” with the results they got in New Zealand and was confident other projects would be brought here soon.

Filming for the final series of Spartacus wraps at the end of the year.

DeKnight promised a “stunningly epic” final season, which will be calledSpartacus: War of the Damned.

The series stars Liam McIntyre as the Thracian-slave-turned-revolutionary out to topple the Roman Empire.

McIntyre took over the role from Andy Whitfield, who starred in the first season then withdrew due to illness. He died of cancer in September, 2011.

- APNZ

The world premiere for Peter Jackson’s hyped first Hobbit film is set to be held in Wellington.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is set for release on December 13, but will premiere on November 28 in Wellington, it was announced today.

Stars from the movie are expected to attend the premiere, along with thousands of fans.

Wellington Mayor Celia Wade-Brown said Wellington would hold “a celebration to remember”.

“The Hobbit’s world premiere will be a celebration of Sir Peter’s devotion to Wellington as well as a great showcase of the Capital City’s creativity,” she said.

Prime Minister John Key said the event would be a great boost for New Zealand’s tourism industry.

“This is fantastic news for Wellington and the country. It will be a real crowd pleaser as we welcome the movie’s stars back for another landmark event,” said Key.

“Wellington has shown it’s a great place to hold a world premiere as it did for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King in 2003, when around 120,000 people lined the city’s streets to salute the filmmakers and stars.”

The second film, The Hobbit: There and Back Again, is set to be released on December 12 in 2013.

Filming is expected to finish in the next month.

- Herald online

Epic swords-and-sandals show Spartacus – which is filmed in New Zealand – will end after its third season, US television network Starz has announced.

In an unusual move, Starz said it would conclude the popular action-adventure series while it’s still a big hit, and after logging only three seasons (or four, counting a six-episode “prequel” season).

The second season drew six million viewers an episode in the US – an enormous number for a paid subscription channel. Spartacus screens on Sky TV in New Zealand.

Creator-executive producer Steven S DeKnight told The Hollywood Reporter he wanted the show to end when it was still at its best.

“How long do you run a show? Do you run it until you can squeeze every last bit of revenue out of it, or do you end it on a high note?” he said.

“That was part of the decision to wrap up the show: The idea of ending the show when you’re on top and the audience still wants more instead of dragging it out until it starts to wane and you kind of limp to the finish line.”

“It’s like The Princess Bride: Cut out all the boring bits and just make the best, most rip-roaring-est tale we can to wrap up the series.”

He promised a “stunningly epic” final season, which will be called Spartacus: War of the Damned.

That 10-episode cycle, which will kick off next January, is filming in New Zealand and will include Kiwi actress Anna Hutchison.

The series stars Liam McIntyre as the Thracian-slave-turned-revolutionary who’s out to topple the Roman Empire.

McIntyre took over the role from Andy Whitfield, who starred the first season, then withdrew due to illness. He died of cancer in September, 2011.

- AP

Our dogs are being watched in Liechtenstein and Russia. In Macedonia, they’re tuning in to our girls. And our Westies are now out east on TV screens in Slovenia and Croatia.

Scores of Kiwi-made TV shows are being watched overseas, enquiries by the Herald on Sunday have revealed.

And it’s a big bucks business – TV exports pumped $37 million into the country in 2010/11, according to Statistics New Zealand.

Among those taking the Kiwi accent and way of life to the world includeGo Girls – on screen in Macedonia, Bosnia and Ukraine and Outrageous Fortune, in Croatia, Slovenia and Italy.

TVNZ licensing general manager Leigh Wilson said demand for Kiwi shows was on the rise.

Canine agility show Wonder Dogs has been snapped up by broadcasters in Russia and Liechtenstein, said Wilson.

Demand in eastern Europe had become insatiable.

“The whole market has opened up, there’s more channels, they’ve got more money to spend. They’re absolutely hungry for it.”

South Pacific Pictures chief executive John Barnett said many Kiwi shows were bought for daytime and off-peak viewing in Europe, where they provided a point of difference to the “cops and docs” heavy offerings from the United States and Australia.

“You don’t find the likes of an Outrageous Fortune or Go Girls on offer anywhere else in the world.”

He agreed that sales were on the up.

“Ten years ago buyers would say, ‘I don’t want a programme from New Zealand’ … now it’s considered to be on par with Australian and Canadian product, ” said Barnett.

The increase in channels, particularly niche, equalled more opportunities for Kiwi shows.

“The Almighty Johnsons playing on a genre channel like SyFy in the UK and Sci Fi in Australia is an example of this.”

Eyeworks chief executive Julie Christie said “character driven shows” such as Matthew and Mark’s Rocky Road were hot.

“Networks are making a shift to male programming or broader humour genres.”

Anything house or food related also sold well as most countries had their own lifestyle pay channels, and both themes were universal so language was not a barrier.

Australian interest in Kiwi content had soared in the past five years, said Christie.

“Almost everything we make now sells into Australia.”

Greenstone TV general manager Bryan Hall said the The Zoo alone had been sold to 90 countries. “I had an email once from someone watchingThe Zoo in Patagonia.”

Where shows were going was not the real story, it was the impact those sales had on boosting New Zealand’s TV production industry, said Hall

“That income stream allows independent producers to stay afloat.

“The result was a better product, and more of it. As a little country we punch really hard for our weight, because we are good at what we do.”

By Cherie Howie

Zombies are pretty big right now. If they attended high school they would be in the ‘Cool Crowd’ with the vampires and Ryan Gosling.

Most people see zombies as pretty terrifying. They eat people, they tend to gather in large crowds and they give off the impression that they smell pretty rank. So if you have a fear of being eaten, crowds or insulting smells, zombies are probably your worst nightmare.

Whenever a new zombie movie comes out the survivors turn out to be the fire man, the local doctor, the ridiculously good looking woman (job usually not specified/important) and a couple of kids who are sure to cause havoc along the way.

But what if the fireman was called out to an emergency (like the zombie invasion perhaps) and was brutally devoured by 500 zombies, and the local doctor surely would have been one of the first to go, I mean he’s the person people go to if they are feeling a bit funky, the ridiculously good looking woman was probably on a date in a busy restaurant at the time of the mass zombie break out and the kids would have done the exact opposite of what they were told, so they definitely would have headed out onto the streets filled with hungry zombies when told by officials to stay inside.

In reality, the real survivors would be the lazy, unemployed, couch potatoes.

Finally there is a zombie movie that has turned all those stereotypical heroes into zombies and the local embarrassments into the last known survivors.

‘Last of the Living’ is a dark comedy that breathes new disease ridden life into a ‘done to death’ concept.

Morgan Williams was one of those lazy couch potatoes given the task of surviving through a zombie movie.

I interviewed him about his time as an underwhelming hero (over the phone, just in case he was infected).

Hi Morgan, thanks for talking with me today. So how long have you been doing this sort of work?

I guess that’s um, loosely sort of 6 years of acting, I’ve also made a few trailers for things i.e. shot, edited and directed them. I’ve also made adverts for my own underwear company called Nudel Men’s Packaging. I’ve also done a bit of presenting, mainly for educating videos and corporate videos.

‘Last of the Living’ looks like an interesting take on the usual zombie film. I like that there’s such unlikely heroes’ in the film, what was it like to be a part of?

We filmed the majority of it, about 80% in 2007 in two weeks. My friend Logan McMillan wrote and directed it and pretty much everybody who was on the film was a mate.  It was a pretty intense shoot, it was a hot time of year and everyone was getting pissed off with everyone else. I think you tend to get pissed off with your mates much easier than on a professional set. We were all switching roles too, I think at one point I was co-producer and the guy who was doing sound would be holding the boom in one shot and then dressing up as a zombie for the next scene.

And what about the other 20%?

Well about a year later, Logan and I just happened to both be in Wellington for Christmas and he had his camera gear and home made steady cam and we met at the beehive on Christmas day. We were able to do all of the pick – up shots then as the place was completely deserted. We tried to do the same thing in Christchurch after that but it was surprisingly busy, I don’t think we ended up using any of the Christchurch footage.

What is the film about?

Well my character was called Morgan, there were two other guys Ash (Ashleigh Southam) and Johnny (Robert Faith) and were the only known survivors of the zombie apocalypse. We end up becoming the unlikely heroes when Stef (Emily Paddon-Brown) who is a scientist finds us and she believes there is an antidote to cure all of the zombies, so she convinces us lazy  guys to help her find a cure. The film is more about their journey and finding the antidote rather than being really gory. That was partly due to not having a huge budget.

Yes, it sounds like it was a pretty low budget film, how did you get funds?

Well Logan initially made a trailer for the film off his own back and  managed to get some interest from a local investor who gave us $10,000 and that was the money we used to pay people on the job and shoot. Once the majority of the film was shot, Logan made a trailer and put it up on zombie fan sites trying to get as much interest in it as possible and a small distributor in America saw it and paid for the rights in America, giving us the funding for editing and finishing the film.

Have you gathered much of a fan base since the ‘Last of the Living’?

Not really, I think New Zealand is kind of immune to the whole celebrity thing. Like we see people walking down the road who are on TV and it doesn’t really bother us. But I was on a train in Britomart recently and I sat next to this Indian guy in his early 20’s and he just looks at me and goes “Oh my God. It’s Morgan from Last of the Living. I love that film so much, I have watched it so many times and I have got all my friends to watch it”. And all the people on the train are looking at me and going we have no idea who this guy is. (laughs).  This guy even knew all my lines, it was crazy, I was just about to say to him as well like, it’s not the best film when he brought it up, but maybe that’s what he liked about it. It had a sort of rawness about it.

Even though the film was full of gory zombie deaths, there were still a few zombies that were killed using various objects. How did you do the special FX for this?

It was mostly done in post, like when Stef (Emily Paddon-Brown) kills this boy zombie we used a melon as his head when we shot the scene and then in post -production we made it into a real head.

What else have you acted in?

I worked on a show called ‘Prehistoric Park’. I was on episode three of the series and played a biologist. It was really fun and interesting because I got to work with a bit of green screen, but mostly CGI (Computer Generated Graphics), and there were people with puppets on their hands pretending to be dinosaurs. Theses puppets would be turned into dinosaurs in post, so I’d be rolling around on the ground pretending to fight off this dinosaur that in reality was a person with a puppet on their hand it was definitely a new experience.

By Tessa McEwing for M&T Models and Talent Agency.