Costa Botes
Costa is an award-winning independent New Zealand filmmaker who writes, directs, produces, and edits across short, feature and documentary formats, and mentors young talent. Costa’s international acclaim includes the Jury Prize at the Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival. Forgotten Silver, a mockumentary co-written and co-directed with Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings trilogy) in 1995, won a special critics prize at the Venice Film Festival and has become a cult favourite worldwide. Costa established his own production company, Lone Pine Film & TV Productions in 2005 to make independent documentaries and his films have garnered selection at Slamdance, Hot Docs, IDFA, and Toronto International Film Festival. His most recent documentary is Act of Kindness, is the story of a young New Zealander’s experiences in post-Genocide Rwanda.
The Asia Pacific Screen Academy expresses its respect for and acknowledgement of the South East Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. We pay our respects to the Traditional Owners of country, including the custodial communities on whose land works are created and celebrated by the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. We acknowledge the continuing connection to land, waters and communities. We also pay our respects to Elders, past and present. We recognise the integral role Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and First Nations peoples continue to play in storytelling and celebration spaces.