'It really sucks' — South Island gets just 10% in major arts funding round

Monday, 20 July 2026

The South Island won less than 10% of the money in the arts sector’s latest major funding round.

One observer called the disparity “startling”, even accounting for funding constraints and necessary bias for the cultural hubs of Auckland and Wellington.

Creative New Zealand this month announced the recipients for the larger of its two funding categories (those who applied for $125,000 or more). More than $104 million was awarded to 94 applicants nationwide, but just $9.9m went to South Island organisations and none outside Canterbury or Otago.

Auckland-based groups received 56% of the available money and Wellington groups nearly 30%. Christchurch received 6%.

CNZ’s chief executive Gretchen La Roche — a former executive director of the Court Theatre — said that outside of Auckland and Wellington, the proportion of funds invested in Christchurch and the South Island was slightly higher than that of “other regions”.

She also acknowledged “the very real pressures that arts organisations are facing”.

Following publication of this story on Monday July 20, CNZ subsequently clarified its position, stating: “Proportionally on funding requested to approved, Christchurch and the South Island were funded at a slightly higher, and equal to, other regions across New Zealand - including Wellington and Auckland.”

Nationwide, the vast majority of applicants — about 90% — were awarded less than they had asked for (applications totalled more than $200m). This included two of Christchurch’s highest-profile organisations.

The Christchurch Symphony Trust was awarded $952,178 a year for three years ‒ less than its 2025 and 2026 allocation despite applying for a 30% increase. Chief executive Graham Sattler said CNZ funding would now account for about 25% of the orchestra’s operating budget, down from 28%.

“We feel deeply for organisations and groups that are worse off.”

The Court Theatre, which sought a 23% increase, was granted $960,005 annually for 2027-2029. Chief executive Richard Aindow said the sum was “lower than our current level of support”. However, the money “represents a significant investment in our work to build community through theatre across Waitaha Canterbury”.

Two other Christchurch organisations, the WORD literary festival and The Physics Room Trust, which runs an art galllery, received annual funding for three years of $75,275 and $371,104 respectively.

Award-winning filmmaker Gerard Smyth, founder of South Island-focused Frank Film, said the disparity between the islands could be hard to undo.

“It becomes self-fulfilling, because the longer you don't give a community cultural funding, the less likely they are to deserve it.”

He believed funding was “given to the areas where the funders live.”

“I'm sure if Creative New Zealand had their headquarters in Waimate, someone in Waimate would get some funding.”

Without a “fairer” share, he said, “Christchurch stood no chance of becoming a cultural capital … our stories are ours and no one else can tell them.”

Arts critic and academic Dr Erin Harrington, speaking personally rather than in her role on the WORD Christchurch board, said CNZ was in an unenviable position. It had had“no meaningful baseline increase in 20 years”, she said, and was reliant on static lotteries funding.

The arts sector’s multibillion-dollar GDP contribution was “on a par with agriculture,” she said, yet it remained “chronically underfunded”. CNZ, she said, was “the meat in the middle”.

It was not a matter of North Island organisations being undeserving, she said, but the sub-10% figure for the entire Mainland showed “there’s something really wrong here.”

“I was really startled by the lack of investment that has come into the South Island.”

She also questioned ministerial engagement: “Minister Goldsmith’s comments on these big picture issues [of arts funding] in the media, for instance in response to Dame Lynda Topp's complaints — very well-founded complaints — have been kind of dismissive. I would like to see elected representatives taking the sector seriously and the concerns of the sector seriously because there is so much to lose.”

“It really sucks,” Harrington said of the round overall. “This is a situation that’s horrible for everyone. It’s horrible for the decision makers and it’s horrible for the organisations and artists.” She noted CNZ had opened a debrief session for applicants last week by saying “we feel your pain”.

Green Party MP and arts and culture spokesperson Kahu Carter, who is contesting Christchurch Central in the forthcoming general election, said: “There is no shortage of amazing art and artists coming out of Christchurch, our second biggest city.”

“It’s simply not good enough that a mere 6% [of] CNZ funding has been allocated to Christchurch, with 10% for the whole of the South Island … The Government consistently under supports Christchurch and the South Island.”

Culture Minister Paul Goldsmith, who is prohibited from commenting directly on CNZ funding decisions said, “I don’t agree with these assertions”.

“The Ministry and Crown entities have delivered a 2% baseline saving, along with everyone else in this year’s budget, because as a country we are still running substantial deficits. We are serious about getting the country’s finances back in order.

“Creative New Zealand’s individual funding decisions are made purposely at arm’s length of ministers. However, our expectation is less is spent on administration, and more goes out the door to artists.”

La Roche said funding decisions were made by CNZ’s board using published criteria “rather than the location of applicants or decision-makers”. Lower funding tiers, for applicants seeking less than $125,000, would be announced in September.

CNZ was developing regional partnerships “which will place arts development and funding decisions much closer to the heart of communities,” La Roche said. The agency itself was “navigating its own constrained financial environment, managing reduced Government funding alongside a static lotteries funding path”.

Peaky Blinders and the UK quota system

Smyth, who does not apply for CNZ funding, suggested a British quota system could be the way forward for the creative sector as a whole.

“In England, which is very similar to New Zealand — because London is at one end of a long country and Auckland is at one end of another long country — they had to legislate that a portion of the television drama funding went to a certain area.

“And then soon after, Peaky Blinders came out.”

The TV show, filmed in the north of England and the Midlands, went on to become one of the world's most successful crime dramas.

“That would never have been made under the old way,” Smyth said. “So the vision for New Zealand would be for there to be a long term plan for local voices.”

“Our government values the arts deeply,” Goldsmith added, “which is why we’re investing $1.7 billion into the broader sector over four years. We’ve also developed a national creative strategy – Amplify, which is an action-oriented strategy that outlines how the Government will help create an environment in which New Zealand’s creative and cultural sectors can flourish over the next five years. Our government’s vision is for New Zealand to be as well known for its arts and creativity as it is for dairy exports and beautiful scenery.

“The strategy focuses on building a pipeline of talent in the arts, in ensuring that public funding is leveraged by philanthropy and other sources of income and, finally, on reducing regulatory burdens that make it more difficult for artists to succeed.”