Helena Brooks

Born in London, and raised across Australasia, Helena Brooks went on to complete a Master of Arts in Directing and Screenwriting at Auckland University. Her long list of commercials includes work for director Ridley Scott. Brooks' short film Nothing Special — a comical tale of a young man struggling to escape an overzealous mother — was nominated for best short at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival. In 2017 she directed episodes of hit shows 800 Words and The Brokenwood Mysteries, followed by psychological thriller The Bad Seed. Brooks is also developing a movie with her Nothing Special partner Jaquie Brown. 

When I'm working hard, my idea of paradise is doing nothing. When I'm doing nothing, my idea of paradise is working. It's a problem I know. Helena Brooks, in a 2008 interview with website Mindfood