The NZ Herald goes behind the scenes of Air NZ’s new safety video. Video / Dean Purcell
Air New Zealand has released its 23rd in-flight safety video today, starring Steven and Dame Valerie Adams, Tom Sainsbury and several other Kiwi stars. Herald Travel journalist Sarah Pollok attended the top-secret filming in August and reports on how it came together.
It begins with a vague email in August from Air New Zealand asking me to give them a call. On the phone an hour later, however, I’m told details can’t be shared until an NDA is signed.
Ironically, the level of confidentiality all but reveals the secret: the airline holds few cards closer than its iconic in-flight safety videos.
Sure enough, I’m sent a date, time and address for a giant black warehouse where a crowd of teenagers mill around between large white trailers. I follow the group into the building, sidestepping electrical cords taped to the ground and people wielding headsets and clipboards, and see the studio has been transformed into an indoor basketball court.
Air New Zealand has revealed their 23rd safety video starring Steven Adams. Photo / Supplied
Most people settle into the five rows of bleachers lining one side of the room. On the other side, crew cluster around several large cameras on tripods or strapped around people’s shoulders. Ahead of me, a gaggle of teenagers dart around the court but one figure towers above them all; Kiwi basketball star Steven Adams.
It’s Adams who is the “star” of the airline’s 23rd safety video, Every Point Counts, according to Air New Zealand chief customer and sales officer Leanne Geraghty.
“Through this safety video, he will be challenged spontaneously to a game of basketball by a bunch of Kiwi kids,” she explains. I count nine youngsters surrounding Adams but it still doesn’t entirely seem like a fair match. Nonetheless, it’s all smiles as they try to score past all 6 feet 11 inches of him.
Adams said he valued the involvement of rangatahi, which made the video particularly special.
“It was awesome to be part of a project that involved young people and the community,” he said in a statement.
Basketball legend Steven Adams is one of the stars of the new Air New Zealand safety video. Photo / Supplied
In Every Point Counts, Steven’s main opponent and co-star is 15-year-old Aucklander Zephaniah Kapoki-Prescott, who admits she only started playing basketball for her school team at the start of this year.
“Now I’m here playing with Steven Adams, which is crazy,” she said between takes but she said despite his height and talent, he had been fun and encouraging to work alongside.
“He’s a Kiwi icon who’s dreamed big, he’s made it on the global stage, and we’re hoping that this video will actually inspire other Kiwis to chase their dreams,” Geraghty said.
Air NZ safety video boasts star-studded Kiwi cast
Adams isn’t the only famous Kiwi featured in the new video. Sports broadcaster Andrew Mulligan does commentary, TikTok star Theo Shakes is an audience member and Steven Adams’ sister Dame Valerie Adams also cameos.
Dame Valerie Adams joins her brother in the new Air New Zealand safety video. Photo / Supplied
Comedian and actor Tom Sainsbury will star in not one but two roles.
“I play both the coach and the referee for a basketball game and I interact with myself, which is a dream come true,” he tells me. While the comic is used to arguing with himself in social media video skits, he admitted the safety part of the safety video was a touch challenging.
“When they asked me to do it, I was like, Will I be the person with the mask? Will I be the person with the life jacket? But no ... I turn my computer, my device, to aeroplane mode,” he said.
A quick step but one Sainsbury discovered wasn’t as easy as it looked.
“It seems quite a simple thing, to just turn a switch on a computer, but, you know, it did take a few … It took a few times for me to get it just right,” he said.
Tom Sainsbury plays both the referee and the coach in the new video. Photo / Supplied
How Air NZ ensures CAA regulations are met
Correctly demonstrating these safety messages, be it activating airplane mode or locating a life jacket, isn’t just important but essential. Beyond the glitz and glam, these videos are mandated by the Civil Aviation Authority and must meet certain specifications.
In an email obtained by TVNZ, the CAA said the video was acceptable, but warned the airline it diverged from the safety message. No following safety videos received critiques, the Herald understands.
How does the airline balance entertainment with education? Gerharty said they begin with the CAA’s required sequences of messages as a framework and then add other elements.
“We look at that sequencing of messaging and then we build our entertainment and engagement storytelling around those,” she said.
So, does the new video manage to delight, entertain and inform travellers? Only you can be the judge.
CEO says basketball is the ‘perfect’ sport for a video
Air New Zealand CEO Greg Foran said the airline was thrilled to have Steven Adams star in the video, as basketball was synonymous with entertainment.
“As one of the fastest-growing sports in Aotearoa, it’s an exciting time to back basketball and shoot for something special,” he said.
Basketball fans should also watch out for nods to historic moments or moves, Foran hinted, which includes a nod to basketball legend LeBron James.
Foran said now was the perfect time to reveal a new video as people start to travel for summer.
“It’s been a few years since we launched a new safety video and with the peak travel season fast approaching, it’s the perfect time to see a new video in the skies,” he said.
The airline’s last safety video was Tiaki & The Guardians, from early 2022.
