James and Suzy Amis Cameron
NEW Zealand prime minister and minister of tourism John Key kicked off Tourism New Zealand’s latest marketing campaign in Jakarta yesterday, aimed at multiple source markets worldwide.
The initiative features a video by Hollywood filmmaker James Cameron, who spent four days with his wife Suzy Amis Cameron filming and experiencing New Zealand’s South Island. The video comprises footage of the couple trekking at the Tasman Glacier, kayaking through the Dart River canyon and aerial views of Blanket Bay, among others.
The couple had chosen New Zealand as their second home four years ago. They have a coastal estate north of Wellington where James is developing the next Avatar movie.
Rene de Monchy, director of trade, public relations and major events of Tourism New Zealand, finds that film tourism plays an important role in driving traffic to the country.
He said: “Film tourism is a great way to get people to dream about coming to New Zealand and to raise awareness of the country. Our recent research shows that The Hobbit is high on the list as a reason to travel to New Zealand.”
Monchy is confident that James’ influence as a renowned filmmaker will help further leverage on the country’s film tourism potential.
Said Indonesian movie star and tourism ambassador for Tourism New Zealand Indonesia Joe Taslim: “Ever since the first The Lord of The Rings movie was released in 2001, New Zealand has come to be known as the home of Middle-earth. As an actor, I appreciate how New Zealand takes its film industry seriously.”
In his speech, prime minister John Key said travel to New Zealand had been rising rapidly and total international arrivals to New Zealand in the year ending May 2016 was 3.3 million with Australia and China being the top source markets.
He expects the number to rise to four million within four years.
