She’s got 16 years’ experience producing content in Hollywood – a career spanning from visual effects and computer graphics at George Lucas' Industrial Light and Magic, to the role of Executive Director of Marketing at Sony Pictures – and now Diane Holland is choosing to put her talents to use in New Zealand.
“I’ve completely fallen in love with New Zealand. My first visit here was meant to last three weeks, and I ended up staying four months. I feel more at home here than I’ve felt anywhere before.”
Diane is the CEO and Managing Director of Academy Award-winning Massive Software, a company specialising in 3D crowd animation systems based in New Zealand with a sales office in Los Angeles.
‘The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy catapulted Massive Software into existence when Peter Jackson approached Massive founder Stephen Regelous about producing software effects for the battlefield scenes. Nowadays, Massive is going from strength to strength. “In a little over a year, we’ve built a viable company based here in New Zealand serving an international client base,”
says Diane.
Diane was approached by Stephen to run the business side of things for the firm in 2001. ,q>“We’d known each other for years in the visual effects world, and he felt I was the right person to help him grow the company.” Diane visited her daughter Lila who worked at Weta Digital on the first two films. “By 2003, I had been missing New Zealand quite a lot, so I accepted Stephen’s offer and applied for my residency.”
Diane’s success in her role and contribution to the industry in New Zealand were recognised when she was invited to participate in an NZTE Investment New Zealand mission to the States to pitch New Zealand as a post-production location. “What we need are the right people on the ground around the world, pitching New Zealand companies and forming relationships.”
Diane recognises it’s the friendly, helpful and hardworking people in the New Zealand film industry that make it what it is. “Most people now know about the incredible beauty and diversity of the New Zealand landscape. But it’s the people, the work ethic, and the fun-loving approach here that are especially great for film-making.”
But it’s not just the people who draw Diane to New Zealand. “The lifestyle is amazing. It feels like it was when I was growing up in post-war America. There’s a sense of prosperity and promise - people feel they have the freedom to do what they want in life.”