# List of New Zealand Academy Award winners and nominees

This is a list of New Zealand Academy Award winners and nominees.

## Best Actor

Best Leading Actor :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 1999 | Russell Crowe | The Insider | Nominated | Crowe was born in New Zealand, but has lived in Australia since his childhood. |
| 2000 | Russell Crowe | Gladiator | Won | |
| 2001 | Russell Crowe | A Beautiful Mind | Nominated | |

## Best Actress

Best Leading Actress :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 2003 | Keisha Castle-Hughes | Whale Rider | Nominated | Debut performance. First indigenous person (Māori) ever nominated in this category. Second youngest nominee (age 13) ever in this category. |

## Best Supporting Actress

Best Supporting Actress :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 1993 | Anna Paquin | The Piano | Won | Dual New Zealand-Canadian citizen. Debut performance. Second youngest winner (age 11) in Academy Award history. |

## Best Animated Short Film

Best Animated Short Film :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 1986 | Bob Stenhouse | The Frog, the Dog and the Devil | Nominated | New Zealand-made film made by the National Film Unit |
| 1994 | Erica Russell | Triangle | Nominated | |

## Best Animated Film

Best Animated Feature :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 2004 | Andrew Adamson | Shrek 2 | Nominated | |

## Best Costume Design

Best Costume Design :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 2001 | Ngila Dickson Richard Taylor | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Nominated | |
| 2003 | Ngila Dickson Richard Taylor | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Won | First time that featured two New Zealanders costume designers in the Best Costume Design category (in different nominations) within the same year. |
| 2003 | Ngila Dickson | The Last Samurai | Nominated | First time that featured two New Zealanders costume designers in the Best Costume Design category (in different nominations) within the same year. |

## Best Director

Best Director :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 1993 | Jane Campion | The Piano | Nominated | Second woman ever to be nominated in this category. |
| 2001 | Peter Jackson | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Nominated | |
| 2003 | Peter Jackson | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Won | |
| 2021 | Jane Campion | The Power of the Dog | Won | First woman ever to be nominated twice in this category. |

## Best Documentary Feature Film

Documentary (Feature) :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 1977 | Michael Firth | Off the Edge | Nominated | |

## Best Film Editing

Best Film Editing :
| Year | Name | Film | Status |
| 2001 | John Gilbert | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Nominated |
| 2002 | Michael Horton | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | Nominated |
| 2003 | Jamie Selkirk | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Won |
| 2016 | John Gilbert | Hacksaw Ridge | Won |
| 2019 | Tom Eagles | Jojo Rabbit | Nominated |

## Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Best Makeup and Hairstyling :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 2001 | Richard Taylor | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Won | Shared with Peter Owen. |
| 2003 | Richard Taylor | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Won | Shared with Peter King. |
| 2015 | Lesley Vanderwalt | Mad Max: Fury Road | Won | New Zealand-born Australian citizen. Shared with Elka Wardega and Damian Martin. |

## Best Original Song

Best Original Song :
| Year | Name | Film | Song | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 2003 | Fran Walsh | The Return of the King | "Into the West" | Won | Shared with Annie Lennox and Howard Shore. |
| 2011 | Bret McKenzie | The Muppets | "Man or Muppet" | Won | |

## Best Picture

Best Picture :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 1998 | Tim Bevan | Elizabeth | Nominated | New Zealand-born British producer. Shared with Alison Owen and Eric Fellner. |
| 2001 | Peter Jackson Fran Walsh | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Nominated | Shared with Barrie M. Osborne. |
| 2002 | Peter Jackson Fran Walsh | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | Nominated | Shared with Barrie M. Osborne. |
| 2003 | Peter Jackson Fran Walsh | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Won | Shared with Barrie M. Osborne. |
| 2007 | Tim Bevan | Atonement | Nominated | Shared with Eric Fellner and Paul Webster. |
| 2009 | Peter Jackson | District 9 | Nominated | Shared with Carolynne Cunningham. |
| 2012 | Tim Bevan | Les Misérables | Nominated | Shared with Eric Fellner, Debra Hayward, and Cameron Mackintosh. |
| 2014 | Tim Bevan Anthony McCarten | The Theory of Everything | Nominated | Shared with Lisa Bruce and Eric Fellner. |
| 2017 | Tim Bevan Anthony McCarten | Darkest Hour | Nominated | Shared with Lisa Bruce, Eric Fellner, and Douglas Urbanski. |
| 2019 | Carthew Neal Taika Waititi Chelsea Winstanley | Jojo Rabbit | Nominated | |
| 2021 | Jane Campion | The Power of the Dog | Nominated | Shared with Tanya Seghatchian, Emile Sherman, Iain Canning, and Roger Frappier |

## Best Production Design

Best Production Design :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 2001 | Grant Major Dan Hennah | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Nominated | |
| 2002 | Grant Major Dan Hennah | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | Nominated | Shared with Alan Lee. |
| 2003 | Grant Major Dan Hennah | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Won | Shared with Alan Lee. |
| 2005 | Grant Major Dan Hennah Simon Bright | King Kong | Nominated | |
| 2009 | Kim Sinclair | Avatar | Won | Shared with Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg. |
| 2012 | Dan Hennah Ra Vincent Simon Bright | The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey | Nominated | |
| 2019 | Ra Vincent | Jojo Rabbit | Nominated | Shared with Nora Sopková. |
| 2021 | Grant Major Amber Richards | The Power of the Dog | Nominated | |

## Best Short Film - Live Action

Live Action Short Film :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 1958 | Brian Brake | Snows of Aorangi | Nominated | First New Zealand film nominated in any category. |
| 1980 | Lloyd Phillips | The Dollar Bottom | Won | First New Zealander to win in any category. |
| 2004 | Taika Waititi Ainsley Gardiner | Two Cars, One Night | Nominated | |
| 2014 | James Lucas | The Phone Call | Won | Dual British-New Zealand citizen. Shared with Mat Kirkby. |

## Best Sound Editing

Sound Editing :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 2002 | Mike Hopkins | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | Won | Shared with Ethan Van der Ryn. |
| 2005 | Mike Hopkins | King Kong | Won | Shared with Ethan Van der Ryn. |
| 2007 | Mike Hopkins | Transformers | Nominated | Shared with Ethan Van der Ryn. |
| 2013 | Brent Burge Chris Ward | The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug | Nominated | |
| 2014 | Brent Burge | The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies | Nominated | Shared with Jason Canovas. |

## Best Sound Mixing

Best Sound Mixing :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 2001 | Gethin Creagh Hammond Peek | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Nominated | Shared with Christopher Boyes, and Michael Semanick. |
| 2002 | Michael Hedges Hammond Peek | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | Nominated | Shared with Christopher Boyes, and Michael Semanick. |
| 2003 | Michael Hedges Hammond Peek | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Won | Shared with Christopher Boyes, and Michael Semanick. |
| 2005 | Michael Hedges Hammond Peek | King Kong | Won | Shared with Christopher Boyes, and Michael Semanick. |
| 2005 | Tony Johnson | The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe | Nominated | Shared with Terry Porter, and Dean A. Zupancic. |
| 2009 | Tony Johnson | Avatar | Nominated | Shared with Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, and Andy Nelson. |
| 2013 | Michael Hedges Tony Johnson | The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug | Nominated | Shared with Christopher Boyes, and Michael Semanick. |

## Best Visual Effects

Best Visual Effects :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 2001 | Richard Taylor | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Won | Shared with Jim Rygiel, Randall William Cook, and Mark Stetson. |
| 2005 | Christian Rivers Richard Taylor | King Kong | Won | Shared with Joe Letteri, and Brian Van't Hul. |
| 2009 | Matt Aitken | District 9 | Nominated | Shared with Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers and Robert Habros |
| 2011 | Dan Lemmon | Rise of the Planet of the Apes | Nominated | Shared with Joe Letteri, R. Christopher White and Daniel Barrett. |
| 2014 | Dan Lemmon | Dawn of the Planet of the Apes | Nominated | Shared with Joe Letteri, Daniel Barrett, and Erik Winquist. |
| 2016 | Dan Lemmon | The Jungle Book | Won | Shared with Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, and Andrew R. Jones. |
| 2017 | Dan Lemmon | War for the Planet of the Apes | Nominated | Shared with Joe Letteri, Daniel Barrett, and Joel Whist. |
| 2019 | Matt Aitken | Avengers: Endgame | Nominated | Shared with Dan DeLeeuw, Russell Earl, and Dan Sudick. |
| 2021 | Sean Noel Walker | Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings | Nominated | Shared with Joe Farrell, Dan Oliver, and Christopher Townsend. |

## Best Writing – Adapted Screenplay

Best Adapted Screenplay :
| Year | Name | Film | Source Material | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 1980 | Jonathan Hardy | Breaker Morant | The play Breaker Morant by Kenneth G. Ross | Nominated | Shared with David Stevens and Bruce Beresford. |
| 2001 | Philippa Boyens Peter Jackson Fran Walsh | The Fellowship of the Ring | The novel The Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien | Nominated | |
| 2003 | Philippa Boyens Peter Jackson Fran Walsh | The Return of the King | The novel The Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien | Won | |
| 2014 | Anthony McCarten | The Theory of Everything | The book Travelling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen Hawking by Jane Hawking | Nominated | |
| 2019 | Taika Waititi | Jojo Rabbit | The novel Caging Skies by Christine Leunens | Won | First indigenous person (Māori) ever to win this category. Second time that two different nominations in the same year and category were for New Zealanders. |
| 2019 | Anthony McCarten | The Two Popes | The play by Anthony McCarten | Nominated | Second time that two different nominations in the same year and category were for New Zealanders. |
| 2021 | Jane Campion | The Power of the Dog | The novel The Power of the Dog by Thomas Savage | Nominated | |

## Best Writing – Original Screenplay

Best Original Screenplay :
| Year | Name | Film | Status | Milestone / Notes |
| 1993 | Jane Campion | The Piano | Won | |
| 1994 | Peter Jackson Fran Walsh | Heavenly Creatures | Nominated | |

## Nominations and Winners

| No. of wins | No. of nominations |
| 27 | 68 |