Kristin loves her 'amazing' reporting job

OUT AND ABOUT: Kristin Hall's ultimate goal is to work in another country as a foreign correspondent. PHOTO/BEN FRASER 210514BF2

When Rotorua's Kristin Hall was a young girl, she would cut square holes out of cardboard boxes pretending to be the likes of Judy Bailey on TV.

Now, at 23, she's ditched the cardboard and has opted for the real thing, working as a roving reporter for TVNZ.

After finishing at Western Heights High School, she moved to the Big Smoke to study journalism at the Auckland University of Technology and landed an internship at TVNZ's Auckland newsroom, and later, a job there.

Last year, she moved to Wellington to take a job as TVNZ's Breakfast reporter, a role that's given her the chance to report on anything from breaking news to the royal tour.

Hall said when she was growing up she discovered news was more than the face that presented it, and she decided she wanted to be a reporter rather than a news anchor at an early age.

Despite the 4am starts, Hall was thrilled her childhood dream had become a reality.

"It's an amazing job, there are so many things I love about it. You get to meet such fascinating people, from all walks of life, and report on all kinds of issues. And every day is different," she said.

As a self-proclaimed "Peter Jackson freak", one of the highlights of her career so far was working on a story about The Hobbit film trilogy.

Reporting on the royal tour was also a highlight, even though she spent hours outside Government House in the pouring rain.

"We were soaked from head to toe, I'm lucky I had some gumboots on hand. It was all very exciting, but I think I was more excited about the fact that I was standing next to these big-name BBC reporters, rather than the tour itself."

During the tour, Hall got the chance to do a live phone interview that was broadcast on the BBC. She said her ultimate goal would be to work in another country as a foreign correspondent.

For those who wanted to follow in her footsteps, she advised them to believe in themselves.

"I know it sounds cliche. It's a very small industry, and is really hard to get into, but don't think it's impossible. If that's your goal then there's nothing stopping you."