Qantas Film and Television Awards

New Zealand film and television awards have gone by many different names and have been organised by different industry groups. As of 2016, New Zealand only has a film awards - the Rialto Channel New Zealand Film Awards.

The first New Zealand television awards were the National TV Awards, which ran from 1964-1965, organised by the New Zealand Television Workshop. The trophy was designed by noted sculptor Greer Twiss.

From 1970-1985, the New Zealand Feltex Awards honoured New Zealand television, sponsored by carpet manufacturer Feltex.

The Feltex Awards were superseded by annual awards organised by the Guild of Film and Television Arts (GOFTA). The awards ran from 1986 to 2003 and were known by a number of different titles, including the GOFTA Awards. The awards were run as joint film and television awards until 2000 when they were split into two separate ceremonies.

The 1987 GOFTA Awards, presented by American TV personality Leeza Gibbons and New Zealand radio host Nic Nolan, is known for its disastrous presentation, including a disruptive audience who heckled guest John Inman, and confusing stage management.

In 1998 the Academy of Film and Television Arts was established by a collection of national guilds including The Techos' Guild, SPADA, WIFT, the Writers Guild and Nga Aho Whakaari. The AFTAs were held in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2003, sponsored by Nokia.

In 2005, the Qantas Television Awards (honouring television and television journalism) and the New Zealand Screen Awards (honouring film and television) were founded as the new award presentations. The Qantas Television Awards were run by the New Zealand Television Broadcasters Council (now known as ThinkTV). These awards celebrated television productions and also incorporated the television media categories that had previously been part of the Qantas Media Awards. The New Zealand Screen Awards were run by the Screen Directors Guild of New Zealand and celebrated both film and television productions, including some overlap with Qantas Television Awards categories.

In 2008 the Qantas Television Awards merged with the New Zealand Screen Awards. From 2008 to 2011, the NZTBC and the SDGNZ jointly ran the Qantas Film and Television Awards. These awards were renamed the Aotearoa Film and Television Awards (abbreviated to AFTA) in 2011.

In 2012 the Screen Directors Guild of New Zealand announced that due to funding and resource restraints it would not be involved with the 2012 AFTAs and would not organise an alternate film industry awards that year.

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