Equipment Planning Services

Here is how this works in practice. Camera and grip planning in New Zealand runs primarily through Panavision NZ in Wellington and Auckland, Portsmouth Films, Rocket Rentals, and the in-house Stone Street Studios and Weta FX inventory built up across Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, King Kong, Mortal Engines, Avatar: The Way of Water, and the active Avatar 3 capture slate.

Here is how this works in practice. Our gear producers spec ARRI ALEXA 35 and Mini LF bodies, RED V-Raptor, Sony VENICE 2, and Panavision DXL packages alongside Cooke S7/i, ARRI Signature Prime, Panavision T-Series anamorphic, and Atlas Orion lens kits, source matched B and C cams for second-unit and aerial work, and book the same focus pullers, key grips, and gaffers who carried major Wellywood productions. Weta FX virtual-production volumes — used through Avatar capture — plus Stone Street Studios stages, Kumeu Film Studios, Auckland Film Studios, Avalon Studios, and Henderson Studios site lists feed the gear-to-stage matrix.

Here is the short of it. Gear movement across New Zealand is shaped by geography, rules, and customs workflow that visiting productions consistently underestimate. NZ Customs Service ATA carnet processing handles temporary import of foreign-owned cameras, lenses, and grip. Biosecurity inspection by the Ministry for Primary Industries inspects every crate landing at Auckland or Christchurch ports for soil, organic matter, and pest risk (mandatory for anything that has touched a previous location).

Here is the short of it. CAA NZ Part 102 commercial drone certification gates any UAS work over 25kg, beyond visual line of sight, or in controlled airspace, with Part 101 covering recreational use under different thresholds. Department of Conservation Part 102 filming permits restrict gear footprints inside Fiordland, Tongariro, Aoraki/Mount Cook, Mount Aspiring, Westland Tai Poutini, Abel Tasman, Nelson Lakes, and Whanganui National Parks. We route four-wheel-drive grip trucks, helicopter slings, and marine-capable rigs through the West Coast, Fiordland, and Stewart Island when needed, and our gear lists carry weather-sealed alpine, sub-tropical Northland, and Fiordland seven-metre-rainfall contingencies as standard.