Our Flag Means Death showcases Auckland’s creativity
Auckland’s creative talent and coastal landscapes shine in Season two of Our Flag Means Death.
Now streaming on Neon in Aotearoa New Zealand, the second season of MAX’s Our Flag Means Death sees the hilarious pirate comedy return with an entertaining new adventure.
Created by showrunner David Jenkins, the popular series stars Rhys Darby as Stede Bonnet and Taika Waititi as Ed Teach/Blackbeard. Joining them this season are fellow Kiwi actors Madeleine Sami and Anapela Polataivao.
In an exciting move, production for season two shifted its base from Los Angeles to Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, setting up at the Kumeu Film Studios in late 2022. Over the course of 67 shoot days, the team captured the screen magic here, with post-production also carried out in Auckland.
Screen Auckland supported filming at several stunning locations in Tāmaki Makaurau including Piha and Bethells Beach, alongside Howick Historical Village, which helped bring this period tale to life on screen.
David Jenkins cites Auckland’s creative talent and landscapes as key motivators for the move from Los Angeles to Auckland, along with budget advantages.
We were looking at the season two budget and asking, ‘how do you get the most money on screen?’. New Zealand was the answer. I’ve seen more of our budget end up on screen than it did in the United States in season one.
David Jenkins
Showrunner
35 film sets were constructed in Tāmaki Makaurau and the show’s magnificent pirate ship, The Revenge, was brought all the way from Los Angeles to Auckland. At 7m wide and 28m long, it mirrors the size of a real boat. In total, three boat sets were built, which were subsequently ten distinct boats over the course Production was truly a Kiwi affair with 96 per cent of the 780-strong crew and 78 per cent of the cast New Zealanders. Post-production required considerable visual effects (VFX) and digital imaging work which was completed in Auckland by talented local businesses and suppliers. The teams carried out post-production ranging from sound design, VFX and motion graphics to picture editing, colour and more.
Among the Auckland companies involved are: The Rebel Fleet, Pinnacle Post, Cause + FX, Fathom and Bespoke Post.
The Rebel Fleet offered a comprehensive array of services for the production, encompassing video assist; digital imaging technicians (DIT); and dailies services. In post-production phase, The Rebel Fleet provided VFX pulls and picture finishing services. Utilising its custom metadata collation and distribution software, Sidecar, the team ensured the seamless integration of valuable on-set metadata, streamlining the pipeline into editorial, VFX and post-production.
Cause + FX's primary work involved green screen compositing to extend the ‘J-Screen’ virtual LED wall background. The company also completed some split screen comps, muzzle flashes, paint work, wire removals and deep-water pool clean up, the latter being one of the team’s favourite sequences.
“We had a fantastic time working with the team and appreciated the opportunity to jump on board the show,” says Paul Dickson, Co- Founder at Cause + FX.
Fathom VFX is another key local vendor for the show, contributing close to 200 shots – including full computer generated ships and oceans to bring the water sequences to life.
A full post-production sound services package was provided by Pinnacle Post which included sound supervision and mixing, automated dialogue replacement (ADR) supervision, sound editorial and audio mastering. Pinnacle Post delivered the entire season from its new Dolby Atmos home theatre mixing stages in Auckland. The company’s director Damian Del Borrello is an Emmy Awards nominated supervising sound editor and re-recording mixer.
The show’s sound effects editorial services were expertly crafted by Bespoke Post Foley, a multiple prime-time, Emmy nominated, audio post-production company.
Our Flag Means Death season two is streaming on Neon now.
96 per cent New Zealand crew
78 per cent New Zealand cast
Production based at Kumeu Film Studios
Post-production took place in Auckland
10 New Zealand head of departments
67 shoot days
35 sets built
