"It's full of life and opportunity, and although nothing can compare to the paradise we live in here, it's a wonderful place to make things happen."
The ex-Kapiti College teacher, whose scholarship cannot be announced publicly until the end of next month, applied for three schools in New York and was offered placements at each.
"I'm at a stage in my life where I know that if I'm going to build a career for myself in filmmaking, as I've done in education, I need to dedicate 100 per cent of my time and energy to doing so.
"The application processes were rigorous, so it was a very flattering outcome."
Prepared to leave behind family and friends, as well as a job as programme manager at the Ministry of Education, Ana is relying on savings and fundraising to cover about $125,000 per year needed to cover the cost of her studies.
"I'm trying to remain philosophical about my situation, believing that if it's really meant to happen, and as long as I keep working at it, it will."
Hard work and determination is nothing new for the ex-Pukerua Bay woman, whose iwi Muaupoko is from Kapiti and has influenced her objectives moving into the film industry.
"In New York, I'll be constantly exposed to different cultural perspectives about, and approaches to filmmaking, which I expect will be particularly valuable given my interest in indigenous issues."
Planning to eventually work in the New Zealand industry as a Maori documentary filmmaker, Ana will specialise in kaupapa Maori and the arts.
"It's extremely important to me that our stories are told for us, and by us, so that they're truly reflective of who we are.
"I'd love to collaborate with other people who have experience in kaupapa that are significant to Maori and use our collective knowledge to tell these stories through film."
She is also interested in working alongside other indigenous people to compare stories and experiences, as well as to document "New Zealand's world-leading" artists, musicians and performers.
Ana, who moved to London in 2009 for her OE, where she worked as a teacher for two years, returned to New Zealand and was offered a role in the Te Reo Maori Student Achievement Group at the Ministry of Education, in 2011.
Since then, her most recent of three trips to New York took place in January this year, when she visited the schools she had applied for.
"Each time I've been to New York I've found that I love it even more.
"I've travelled all over the world and never felt this way about any other place I've been."
Having already received certificates in Contemporary Maori Design and Visual Communication Design, Ana holds a Bachelor of Design (Hons), with a photographic major, as well as a postgraduate Diploma in Secondary Education and a diploma in Digital Film.
"Art in all forms features significantly in our family and has done for generations," she said.
"As a child I was captivated by the incredible photographs my granddad took of his family.
"Through them I started to learn that photographs, like the written word, had the power to continue to tell stories years after people had passed and events had happened."
¦A fundraising page for Ana can be found here.
¦Visit Film School Fundraising for information about a range of fundraisers taking place over the next couple of months, including a hip-hop concert at Raumati's Boundary Tap and Kitchen, featuring artists Che Fu and Scribe.
