Fiona Samuel, of Auckland, MNZM, for services to television and theatre
Fiona Samuel started her career as an actor and has since shifted her focus to script writing and directing. Her television dramas include ‘The Marching Girls’, ‘Face Value’, ‘Home Movie’, and Sunday Theatre telemovies ‘Piece of My Heart’ and ‘Bliss’. Her plays for theatre include ‘The Wedding Party’, ‘Lashings of Whipped Cream: A Session with a Teenage Dominatrix’ and ‘Ghost Train’, and she has made three short films. Her most recent television screenplay was ‘Consent’, the story of Louise Nicholas’ fight for justice. She has focused on female-driven dramas and is an advocate of funding equity for women directors. Ms Samuel is President of the New Zealand Writers Guild.