Irish crime drama The Gone has won a number of awards at the NZ TV Awards 2023, including Best Drama.
Ireland-New Zealand co-production The Gone won five awards at the NZ TV Awards 2023. These awards include Best Drama, Best Cinematography (Drama/Comedy Drama) for Dave Cameron, Best Original Score for Mahuia Bridgman-Cooper, Best Costume Design for Pauline Pohatu and Best Makeup Design for Kelly Mitchell. The series took home the most awards of any series nominated at the awards ceremony.
The Gone is a six part drama that follows an Irish detective (Richard Flood) teams up with a Kiwi cop (Acushla-Tara Kupe) to find an Irish couple who have vanished from a rural New Zealand town. The pair have to contend with a community's growing disquiet that the disappearances may be linked to a series of historical murders.
The series was produced by Kingfisher Films and Blinder Films in association with Southern Light Films (NZ) for RTÉ and TVNZ. Filming took place across Auckland and Te Aroha in New Zealand, as well as Dublin, Ireland. Irish actor Richard Flood and New Zealand’s Acushla-Tara Kupe lead the cast. They were joined by Michelle Fairley, Carolyn Bracken, Liam Carney, and Aaron Monaghan joined the cast along with Aotearoa New Zealand’s Wayne Hapi, Manu Bennett, Vanessa Rare, and Scott Wills.
The Gone was made with support from Te Puna Kairangi, the New Zealand Government’s Premium Productions for International Audiences Fund and New Zealand’s Screen Production Grant, as well as Screen Ireland, RTÉ, TVNZ, NZ On Air, and the BAI Sound & Vision Fund.
The series’ writers are Anna McPartlin (Striking Out, Holby City) and Michael Bennett (Ngāti Whakaue: In Dark Places) with direction from Hannah Quinn (Vikings Valhalla, Blood, The Stranger) and Peter Meteherangi Tikao Burger (Ngāi Tahu, Rangitāne: One Lane Bridge).
Executive producers are Karl Zohrab for Kingfisher Films, Yvonne Donohoe (Striking Out, Extra Ordinary), and Katie Holly (Mr Malcolm’s List, Love & Friendship) for Keeper Pictures, with producer Timothy White for Southern Light Films, producer Reikura Kahi (Waikato, Ngāti Hine), and executive producer Greg Bailey. The series was created by Simone Nathan (Our Flag Means Death, Kid Sister) and Karl Zohrab and developed by Anna McPartlin, Michael Bennett, and Yvonne Donohoe.
