Taika Waititi

Taika Waititi has been involved in the film industry for decades, initially as an actor and comedian, and now focused on writing and directing. His creative pursuits also include painting, photography, and fashion design. Recognition for his range of dramatic and comedic work include an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award and a Grammy Award.

His first professional film-making effort, Two Cars, One Night, was nominated for an Academy Award in 2003. received an Academy Award was nominated for an Academy Award. His next short film was Tama Tu about a group of Maori Soldiers in Italy during World War 2. As a performer and comedian, he created a solo production, "Taika's Incredible Show" and its sequel "Taika's Incrediblerer Show". His feature films Boy (2010) and Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016) have each been the top-grossing New Zealand film. HIs television work includes co-creating and producing the comedy drama series Reservation Dogs. Waititi co-wrote, co-directed and starred in the horror comedy film What We Do in the Shadows (2014) with Jemaine Clement, which was adapted into a television series of the same name in 2019. He became a blockbuster director with his film Thor: Ragnarok (2017), and received critical acclaim, and a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar, for his film Jojo Rabbit (2019).

Waititi is committed to incorporating his Maori heritage into his own projects and to helping projects get made by Maori and other Indigenous directors. These projects include executive producing the New Zealand films The Breaker Upperers and Baby Done and now sci-fi film Night Raiders.