EDITION→
Global
•
USA
•
UK
•
AUNZ
•
CANADA
•
IRELAND
•
FRANCE
•
GERMANY
•
ASIA
•
EUROPE
•
LATAM
•
MEA
Edition : InternationalLanguage : English
HOME
NEWS
CREATIVE LIBRARY
IMMORTAL AWARDS
MEMBER COMPANIES
PEOPLE
JOBS
How LBB WorksPlans & PricingEditorial Toolkit
news
NEWS
CREATIVE LIBRARY
IMMORTAL AWARDS
MEMBER COMPANIES
PEOPLE
JOBS
Login or Register
People in association withThe Monthly Cut
Dan Watkins Built New Zealand’s ‘Ultimate Production Playground’
lbbonline.com
0
LIKE
ADD TO COLLECTION
14/08/2026
Share
Inspired by Peter Jackson’s setup on The Hobbit, the Reel Factory founder transformed a rundown boat-building factory into a fully integrated production hub with two sound stages, a Volume Wall, post-production downstairs and a cinema
What started as an obsession with sports films has become Australasia’s only fully integrated production hub.
Speaking on Reel Factory’s spotlight series Reel Good Yarns, which sees the people behind the camera share their stories, Dan Watkins traced the line from a North Shore kid obsessed with sports films to founder of what he calls the only fully integrated production hub in Australasia.
The turning point came on the set of Peter Jackon’s The Hobbit. Reel Factory was tasked with shooting behind-the-scenes footage for Tourism New Zealand, and Dan got an inside look at what an end-to-end setup entails.
“He had everything at his fingertips,” he said.
“The facilities were just next level. That was a big turning point for us. If we’re going to build this business, let’s just go all in and build something that doesn’t exist here.”
Nine years into business, an old boat-building factory came up for grabs. It was, in his words, an absolute rundown hole. That was the appeal; gut the whole thing, and start from scratch to build the ultimate production playground.
The hub comprises two sound stages out the back, one built around the Volume Wall, the other a smaller cyc studio for robotic tabletop work. A production office seats 35 people, allowing multiple teams to run at once.
Post lives downstairs, offline through online and colour, with mastering kept in-house and a cinema to watch it all back.
“It’s the perfect flow,” Dan continued. “Prep, shoot, post. You don’t have to leave at all. With all this, I would have to say my favourite rooms in the whole place are the bar and the driving range.”
The kit list reads like a wish list. A fleet of RED cameras, one of the only Phantoms in the country — shooting up to 2000 frames a second — the fastest cinebot in the world, drones from full-size cinema rigs down to FPV units that fit in your palm, custom-built tracking vehicles that let the team shoot where they want without road permits or traffic management plans, gimbals, custom camera rigs, and more, along with the recent addition of the only commercial Volume Wall in New Zealand.
Reel Factory now runs multiple production teams out of the building, with crew employed full-time across post-production, camera, studio, and more. Rather than pulled together job by job, Dan is quick to point out that the roof is only worth what’s underneath it.
“This business wouldn’t be what it is without all the amazing humans we get to work with. And the same goes for everyone behind the agencies, the brands and the networks that are backing us.”
“I’m forever grateful for the amount of trust that gets put into us.”
Check out Dan’s Reel Good Yarns here.
People in association withThe Monthly Cut
More News from Reel Factory
The Difference Between a Good Grade and a Great Grade20/07/2026
Drew Lightfoot’s Love Of Animation Turned Into An “Obsession With Time Itself”15/07/2026
Chris Watkins’ Philosophy: “Heighten What Already Exists”20/05/2026
ALL THEIR NEWS
Work from Reel Factory
Horror – Ryan HeronLightingplus
05/08/2026
Food EnvyAir New Zealand
05/08/2026
Swerve the Surcharge – Ryan HeronBNZ
05/08/2026
ALL THEIR WORK
SUBSCRIBE TO LBB’S newsletterEnter your email
FOLLOW US
Events
DPA + SLA (+ US Add.)
MyLBB Score
About Us
Contact
Editorial Toolkit
Help & FAQ
Privacy Policy
Main Terms & Conditions
Newsletters
Create your own LBB icons
How it works
Plans & Pricing
LBB’s Global Sponsor
