April Phillips

British-born but long based in New Zealand, April Phillips has acted on television and film, and created a number of award-winning short films. She both wrote and starred in shorts Letter for Hope and Utu Pihikete, then stepped up to directing with 2016's REM. The horror tale won screenings and awards at a number of global film festivals. Phillips has a Masters in Scriptwriting from Victoria University's International Institute of Modern Letters. Her extensive CV of theatre work includes another award-winner, 2015 ensemble drama Motel. Her comic play STiFF has had seasons in Auckland, London and Melbourne.

It’s fun and fascinating to step back in time and feel what it was like to live in pioneering times that were physically arduous, often lonely, and at times frightening. April Phillips, on writing and starring in colonial-era short film Utu Pihikete