Extras
James Griffin (Creator, Executive Producer & Writer)
Diplomatic Immunity series creator, Executive Producer and Writer James Griffin is also one half of the creative pair force behind the award-winning drama series Outrageous Fortune. In addition, he also co-wrote the 2006 New Zealand blockbuster hit Sione’s Wedding with Oscar Kightley.
Diplomatic Immunity series creator, Executive Producer and Writer James Griffin is also one half of the creative pair force behind the award-winning drama series Outrageous Fortune. In addition, he also co-wrote the 2006 New Zealand blockbuster hit Sione’s Wedding with Oscar Kightley.
In 2007 he won the Air New Zealand Screen Award for Best Script Drama/Comedy for the series two Outrageous Fortune Christmas Special and the same episode won James the award for Best Script at the 2007 Qantas Television Awards.
James has been a scriptwriter since 1985, when he joined the TVNZ Drama Department. His first writing credits were on the drama series Gloss and the sketch comedy series Funny Business. Since then his name has appeared as a writer on many shows including Marlin Bay, More Issues, Plainclothes, That Comedy Show, Citylife (which he also devised and was Associate Producer), the mini-series The Chosen, Jacksons Wharf, Shortland Street, Street Legal, and Being Eve. He also wrote the one-off drama The Possum Hunter and the comedy playhouse Double Booking, which won Best Script, Comedy at the 1999 TV Guide Television Awards.
James is now a Head Writer at South Pacific Pictures. Until 2007 he was Head of Development, overseeing the initial script development of such projects as Maddigan’s Quest, Interrogation and We’re Here to Help.
Serial Killers, a television series based on James’ award-winning play screened on TV One in 2005 to glowing reviews. The play itself has been performed by four major New Zealand theatre companies and was the winner of the 2000 Chapman Tripp Award for Best New Writer. Serial Killers has also had seasons in the UK and Australia.
James’ latest television credits have been for the award winning drama series Mercy Peak and the weekly satirical series Spin Doctors, which won Best Comedy Script at the 2003 AFTA awards. He was story producer for the hit animated television show bro’Town and writes Final Word, a weekly satirical column in the weekend edition of the New Zealand Herald newspaper.
Chris Hampson (Producer)
Chris Hampson has been a producer and writer in the New Zealand film and television broadcasting industries for more than thirty years.
In addition to Diplomatic Immunity, Chris is now executive producing the upcoming feature film Under the Mountain and developing a television mini-series for production in 2009.
Chris Hampson has been a producer and writer in the New Zealand film and television broadcasting industries for more than thirty years.
In addition to Diplomatic Immunity, Chris is now executive producing the upcoming feature film Under the Mountain and developing a television mini-series for production in 2009.
Adding to a substantial number of script credits for both film and television, Chris also executive produced a number of feature films including Via Satellite, Savage Holiday, Scarfies, the New Zealand telefeature Skin & Bone and the short film Tick in 2001.
Chris also produced a number of television projects, including two series of the New Zealand drama Orange Roughies, four series of the drama Street Legal, the mini-series Doves of War and the children’s drama series Hard Out. He also executive produced Coverstory, Marlin Bay, Fallout, Deepwater Haven and the first two series of Shortland Street.
Chris worked on a number of earlier productions as a writer, script consultant and post production director including the serial Metro Law, the mini-series Code of Silence, telefeature Old Scores, Raider of the South Seas, Gold!, Betty’s Bunch and All For One.
Currently a principal of the production company ScreenWorks, Chris previously worked as an executive at several major New Zealand production companies. Appointed Head of Development at South Pacific Pictures in 1992, he went onto work at Gibson Group before becoming Executive Producer for a number of low budget feature films through ScreenVisioNZ (part of the New Zealand Film Commission).
Tracey Collins (Production & Costume Designer)
Responsible for the elaborate production and costume design in the children’s series Maddigan’s Quest, Tracey Collins is no stranger to creating fantasy worlds for television, film and theatre projects.
Responsible for the elaborate production and costume design in the children’s series Maddigan’s Quest, Tracey Collins is no stranger to creating fantasy worlds for television, film and theatre projects.
Tracey won the 2007 Air New Zealand Screen Award for Contribution to Design for her work on Maddigan’s Quest and was Costume Designer for the The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe feature film. She also worked as and Costume and Props Supervisor for the 2006 telefeature, Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior. She was also Costume Designer on the 1999 telefeature This Is It.
Since the 1980s she has worked for Mercury Theatre, Watershed Theatre, Theatre at Large, Inside Out Theatre and Maidment Youth Theatre. She has also designed for opera.
Tracey’s costume design credits include the theatrical plays Sons of Charlie Paora, Louis Vuitton Cup Ball and The Lucille Ball Story. She also worked on Shakespeare’s Leah and A Midsummer Night’s Dream with Diplomatic Immunity Executive Producer and Director, Simon Bennett for the New Zealand Actor’s Company.