Tuesday, November 20 • 2:30pm - 2:55pm

It’s all over the internet, television is dying, the world is online. Except it’s not really true. NZ audiences are still larger on TV than online – particularly for local audiovisual content. But it is changing, and the demography of who’s watching is quite different from ten years ago.

In particular, children are not watching. And at NZ On Air we think that’s a problem. Not because we want kids to watch TV. But because seeing our faces, hearing our voices, and experiencing our stories helps to shape our young people on their path to adult citizenship. NZ storytelling makes us who we are. It reinforces what it means to be a New Zealander – with all our different cultures, stories, landscapes and people.

So NZ On Air and TVNZ have created HEIHEI, an online home for children’s content. A space for children aged 5-9 to watch and engage with local (and a bit of international) content created and curated just for them. And it’s not a selfish space – there’s room for public sector partnerships, connection with the curriculum, and direct connection with children themselves – in a safe, ad-free environment.

Risky? Yes.

Necessary? Absolutely.

How did we do it? What did we learn? How is it going? All this and more is what I’ll cover in this presentation.

Amie Mills, Head of Funding, NZ On Air

Overall responsibility for the Scripted, Factual and Platforms streams of the NZ Media Fund, and for leading NZ On Air’s responses to change; ensuring funding decision-making is integrated, future-focused, thoughtful, transparent, and relevant to New Zealand audiences.