Secluded piece of Hawke’s Bay farm earmarked for $40m film studio

A secluded piece of farmland near Te Awanga, Hawke’s Bay, has been chosen as the site for a proposed $40 million film studio development, which is said to have interest from Academy Award-winning filmmaker Ron Howard. Auckland-based company No.8 Studios Ltd. has lodged a resource consent application to build the studio on 24 hectares of […]

Collins Street Festival: Napier’s Boujee-ist New Street Party Set To Hit Ahuriri

Napier’s inaugural Collins Street Festival is set to hit Ahuriri, one of Hawke’s Bay’s coolest little suburbs, on Saturday 2nd March 2024. Nestled in a stretch of road behind the Urban Winery, this brand new festival showcases the best of what the region has to offer, bringing together the finest in local food, drinks and […]

Award-winning mural unveiled in Hastings by artist Stan Mans

Artist Stan Mans has unveiled his award-winning mural titled ‘Breath of Life’ in Hastings. Stan was one of ten winners from across the country who took out the top prize in Keep New Zealand Beautiful’s Resene Nature Mural Competition 2023. This is the third time Stan has placed in the competition, previously winning in both 2019 […]

Toitoi Wins Two National Industry Awards

Earlier this week Toitoi – Hawke’s Bay Arts & Events Centre won two national event industry venue awards, in recognition of their commitment to the Hastings and Hawke’s Bay community, and its work towards creating career pathways in the events industry. It also included Toitoi’s efforts to use arts and entertainment events as a means […]

Hawke’s Bay film industry moves forward as community hub opens

Hawke’s Bay film industry has taken a big step forward with the opening of a community hub. The hub in central Hastings will focus on the local film industry. It is the official base for Eastern Screen Alliance, a regional film office and part of a national body, Regional Film Offices of New Zealand (RFONZ), […]

Squares set for summer fun

Emerson Street’s two historic squares – Clive Square and Memorial Square – are kicking summer off to a bright start with picnics, music and art. Squares in the City is a mini festival in the heart of Napier running from 1-8 December, with a different event – and a different summery vibe – on offer […]

CBD’s transform as live, work and play districts

Bricks and mortar retail is no longer the main reason to go into the CBD’s of Hastings, Havelock North and Napier. The continued growth of online shopping is reshaping our CBD’s to be the heart of our cities as a broader mix of living, working and play areas. Councils and private developers such as Wallace […]

Hawke’s Bay as a Film Friendly Destination

Building Connections, Capturing Projects and Creating Local Stories Hawke’s Bay is an ideal location for all things screen. It has some of the most unfilmed locations, great wine and food, high sunshine hours and all is located in a reasonable distance from each other. It seems hard to believe that filming has not continued to […]

Connectivity wins the 2023 Fieldays No.8 Wire National Art Award

Artist Ricks Terstappen from Hawke’s Bay has won the top prize in this year’s Fieldays No.8 Wire National Art Award for his artwork “Connectivity” in the awards ceremony held last night at ArtsPost Galleries & Shop in Hamilton Kirikiriroa. The above image is of judge and sculptor Hannah Kidd with the winning entry by artist […]

‘Muni’ awakens with metro city vibe

The doors shut to Hutchinson’s eight years ago, as well as the Municipal Building and beloved Assembly Hall, due to the building being earthquake prone. Now the Municipal Building (‘Muni’) is springing back to life as part of the overall Toitoi – Hawke’s Bay Arts & Events Centre rebuild project that began in 2016, costing over $45 million. The ground floor has […]