NZIFF Celebrates 50 Years With A Retro Special You Don’t Want to Miss! Auckland Accommodation

If you’re a certified cinephile, you surely wouldn’t want to miss this year’s New Zealand International Film Festival.

It’s that most wonderful time of the year when, instead of the usual superheroes and sequels, you get served quality films that are truly brain racking or awe inspiring. It’s a rare chance to witness the latest and brightest masterpieces direct from premier festivals in North America, Australia and Europe.

Over 50 years, the NZIFF has maintained a rich tradition of diverse choice of expertly crafted films that beg to be experienced by an audience. This might be your only chance to watch the rising cream of the crop in the majesty of some of the finest venues in Auckland. It’s the cultural highlight of winter that will leave your heart warm and your mind open.

This year the NZIFF celebrates their 50th anniversary with a special “retrospective” programme. Among the confirmed films are the spectacular 1994 Swedish documentary The Atlantic, Cannes Film Festival 1976 Grand Prix award-winning film Cría Cuervos, Soviet-era romantic comedy Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears, landmark lesbian love story Desert Hearts, and Hunger, the Scandinavian classic that opened the first Auckland International Film Festival.

But there’s more in store for festival fans like yourself.

There will be a collection of past festival posters and clippings on exhibit at ASB Waterfront Theatre as well as screenings for up-and-coming documentaries, series and short films too. Add to that a curated selection of 13 striking works made by our homegrown filmmakers. Two features made within our own shores feature characters on very different adventures: a Man Alone story set in Central Otago, and a time-shifting crime thriller set in Thames.

A total of 150-170 features are waiting for both audiences and filmmakers to indulge with.

The festival will be running from 19th July (Thursday) to 5th August (Sunday). We heard the tickets are quickly selling out. So be sure to get yours as early as now.

Also, if you will be coming in from afar, be sure to book your accommodation in advance before they quickly fill up.

If you’re looking for an ASB showgrounds hotel that’s near the venues, we have one right here at Ellerslie. From here, you can reach each one of the NZIFF Auckland venues in less than half an hour: