About
I grew up on a farm. My mum’s an artist and my dad’s a mechanical engineer — so I guess it was inevitable that I’d end up curious about how things work, and dreaming up how they could be designed.
I’ve worked in film since 2007, across grip, post, animation, directing, and lighting — and now as a cinematographer. I’ve been fortunate to experience a wide gamut of sets, both in New Zealand and overseas — from short films held together with tape to nine-figure Hollywood blockbusters. My short film DISAPPEAR screened at Pixar, picked up a Young Directors Award from Danny Boyle, and a YDA at Cannes Lions.
Between 2017 and 2020, I took a hiatus from film and went deep into fine woodworking — Taking standing trees to air-dried lumber to heirloom-quality furniture built with traditional joinery that will last centuries. It taught me to slow down and form a deep respect for materials and quality tools. Every detail matters.
That naturally bled back into my film career, and later, my custom gear design. cineAKS started with me making gear for myself — usually because what I wanted didn’t exist, or it was over-complicated and overpriced. Colleagues started asking for their own, and it grew from there.
Everything’s made here at home in New Zealand (my wife’s very patient — and a talented creative professional herself). I do all my own CAD work, and I’ve been 3D-printing since RepRap were still a thing. I make all the woodwork here too — often with tools I’ve built myself. I build things I want to use: solid, simple, and made to last.
We have no right to the fruit of our labour, only the labour itself. I love making stuff.
Harrie
Proud member of the The Screen Industry Guild NZ, and associate member of the New Zealand Cinematographers Society.
