Wellington has been named by the United Nations as a world City of Film, less than a day after new Mayor Andy Foster, whose campaign was backed by Sir Peter Jackson, was officially installed in the job.
The man Sir Peter Jackson funded as a candidate in the recent local body elections won the mayoralty from Justin Lester by a margin of just 62 votes.
Seven Sharp reported that less than 24 hours later, Mr Foster's first official announcement was that Wellington is now a UNESCO City of Film.
A reporter put to Mr Foster: "This is your first announcement and it's about film?"
"No. We play the cards that are dealt to us. We deal with what's in front us," Mr Foster replied. "And this is a good news story for Wellington, we should be celebrating it."
Wellington's mayor Andy Foster has had a busy first official day in the job with announcements for the film sector and a controversial development.
UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, has been gathering cities to share experiences in seven different industries.
There are now 250 of these Creative Cities worldwide. Some are Cities of Literature, others of Food, and Auckland is already a City of Music.
Wellington now joins the ranks of the other 17 Cities of Film, and the capital's film industry is convinced the title will pay off.
"I see this as a great drawcard, getting the attention of the international community to bring more international players, more international filmmakers, more international producers to Wellington," one industry leader said.
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