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Creative and Screen, AR/VRA starring roleNew Zealand’s natural good looks are backed with technical talent that sees it increasingly cast as a hero amongst screen industry professionals. As well as offering an impressive network of talent, crew and studio facilities, incentives aimed at attracting international productions ensure filming a production in Auckland costs about 20 per cent less than Australia or Canada and 30 per cent less than the US. In line with Auckland’s growing innovative, tech-driven industries, the city is now home to some of New Zealand’s best post production, visual effects artists, game developers and creative animation studios, including a new film studio in West Auckland.New Zealand’s diverse landscapes - glaciers, steaming hot pools, mountains, beaches, white-water rivers and sub-tropical forests - have made it a dream destination for cinematographers and location scouts.AUCKLAND AN INNOVATION HUB OF THE ASIA PACIFIC | 5Augmented reality and virtual reality is going to totally revolutionise so many different industries, whether it be screen, health sciences, commercial property or tourism sectors.AR/VR made reality Goldman Sachs forecasts the augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) industry will be worth NZ$270 billion a year by 2025, and Auckland is keen to play its part in making that a reality. The AR/VR Garage was opened in September 2016, establishing the city as an international hub for this hot technology and providing a high-tech focal point for investors and collaborators.Dean Butchers, ATEED General Manager, Business Attractions & Investment, says: “Augmented reality and virtual reality is going to totally revolutionise so many different industries, whether it be screen, health sciences, commercial property or tourism sectors. It is one of those new knowledge industries that Auckland is very keen to encourage and grow.”The AR/VR Garage went from concept to reality in just three months, helped along by the international relationships forged during Auckland’s Tripartite Economic Alliance with Los Angeles and Guangzhou, which coincided with the Magnify VR/AR Pacific Summit during Techweek AKL 2016.The research and development space aims to fuel Auckland’s growing AR/VR community - game developers, screen and film producers, animators, educators and digital storytellers - by giving subsidised access to technology and tools and providing co-working space to help them connect with contacts for growth, from major corporates to tertiary and research institutions and government agencies. Within five months the facility had more than 20 commercial projects in its pipeline, some with international partners, with more to come.The AR/VR Garage has since been named the Oceania base of the influential US-based VR Society, a move that will cement Auckland’s place in a Pacific Rim technology corridor for VR and AR start-ups. The society last year secured about US$170 million of VR projects for its global members, which include Walt Disney Studios, Pixar, Marvel, Universal Studios and DreamWorks Animation.