My Town: N00b Creator Victoria Boult On The Best Things About Queenstown and Gore

With a new show N00b screening now, detailing the life and love of a group of teenagers in Gore in 2005, Victoria Boult tells what inspired the six-part series, why she loves small-town New Zealand, and where to go when you’re in the neighbourhood.

Growing up in the Deep South was so formative for Victoria Boult (Ngāi Tahu) that she made a show about it. N00b is bold, new and, though set in the early 2000s, firmly of the now with its TikTok origin story and pacy format.

The screenwriter and director was born in Queenstown, spending her childhood and adolescence there, and she appreciated its motley dynamic. “It was simultaneously a diverse and sprawling metropolis – with lots of international tourists, huge events like Winter Festival and world-class views – and an intimate, tight-knit community. There was only one high school and I knew everyone in my year. I got the best of both worlds.”

Victoria fell in love with film as a teenager. “I used to lie in bed at night and watch weird, arthouse movies that no one in my real life had ever heard of.”

After finishing high school she left for a brief stint at trying something “more practical”, studying law in Sydney. “Safe to say, I didn’t love it,” she explains. “I decided to take a film studies class on a whim and changed my major a week later. I’ve been a film lover – and film-maker – ever since.”

Greta Gerwig, Luca Guadagnino and Jesse Armstrong are all inspirational figures, and local luminary Jane Campion was at the helm of her very first film job, which saw Victoria cut her teeth on The Power of the Dog.

“Since then, I’ve had the privilege of writing for and developing shows like Spinal Destination, One Lane Bridge, Friends Like Her and Ahikaroa,” Victoria says.

Currently based in Auckland – a hub for film work in New Zealand – she returned to the idea of Southland for N00b.

Bringing her work to life was a collaborative project; the miniseries was co-directed and co-created with “wonderful” producer Rachel Fawcett.

“N00b was originally born out of a TikTok series, which Rachel and I also created. The TikTok series went viral in 2022 and our TV show was born!”

Set in Gore in 2005, the show follows a cohort of adolescents, led by protagonist Nikau (Max Crean) captain of the school’s first IV.

“The school in N00b – Gore College – was very much inspired by my own experience,” says Victoria, who went to the small, tight-knit and “accepting” Whakatipu High.

“Because we didn’t have a tonne to do, the stakes of high school felt incredibly high: every party was the ‘night of the year’, formal was the biggest day of your life and getting Head Girl was EVERYTHING. These stakes are ever present in the show too.”

The small-town setting was critical, presenting different adolescent tensions to those of bustling cities like Auckland or Wellington. “In having the show set in Gore, the characters really feel a sense of isolation,” Victoria explains. “For the characters in N00b, their small town feels like a prison – and they rely on the internet to escape it.”

However, over the course of the series, they begin to realise that Gore isn’t so bad after all.

So far, so topical. But why Gore?

“We were originally drawn to Gore because of the infamous Mikey Havoc and Newsboy “Gore is Gay” clip, that went viral in the early 2000s,” explains Victoria. “The vitriol that came as a result of that inspired us. Our writer’s table asked: what would it have been like to be a young person growing up in Gore at that time and struggling with your own sexuality?”

Only some of the series was able to be shot on location. “Unfortunately, we were only able to film B-Roll in Gore for a day or two. The rest of the show was filmed in Auckland,” she explains. “However, during the little time I spent in Gore, I fell in love with it. The cheese rolls were so good!”

She was already familiar with the town. Growing up in nearby Queenstown, Victoria would visit Gore for drama competitions and debating. “I was clearly a very cool teenager,” she says, adding that a photo op in front of the famous trout was a must.

The two years she’s spent developing N00b has given deeper familiarity with the Southland town. “I fell in love with it,” she says.

“Gore is often the butt of the joke, but it – and the rest of Southland – is truly beautiful. Growing up in rural New Zealand, you spend a lot of time as a teenager wanting to escape. However, when you do leave, you realise how much you took the stunning natural environment, the kind community and your friends for granted.”

The show gave her an opportunity to write a “love letter” to Southland, Gore and small towns all over the country. “Our teenage characters in N00b go on this journey: they begin the series resisting their hometown, only to realise its beauty by the end.”

Victoria still loves Queenstown and returns home as often as she can. These are some of her favourite spots down south.

When we want to go out, we go to Aosta in Arrowtown. The pasta. It’s just SO good. And, you can go upstairs afterwards and see a movie at Dorothy Browns. My literal dream night out.

For a special occasion, I absolutely love Mora. It feels like a little slice of paradise in the middle of a much bigger paradise.

I really love going to Provisions in Arrowtown. The food is great, the staff are so kind and the outdoor garden is THE BEST to write in. I wrote quite a bit of N00b there!

For cheap eats, it’s Slow Cuts. I really like the burgers and salads.

My favourite bar is The Blue Door. It’s cosy, it’s intimate, it’s got live jazz music: what’s not to love?!

Another good spot is the farm shop at Royalburn Station in Arrowtown. A really sweet little grocery store.

Margot’s in Central Queenstown has the best food and biggest margaritas. You’ve gotta try them!

For fashion, Seletti Concept Store in Arrowtown is gorgeous. I like going in there to not even buy anything, but just steal fashion inspiration from the way they’ve styled the clothes on the mannequins.

Bound Books in Central Queenstown is really cool. I love how they have books that you wouldn’t often see in mainstream stores.

I love the Arrowtown Library. I often go to sit there and write, and on Sundays they have the most adorable market. It’s gorgeous in the summer.

Locals know where to go to get the best view. There is a walk just behind the graveyard in Arrowtown (I know, but stick with me here!). If you clamber up the hill, when you get to the top you get the most INSANE view of the entire Queenstown basin. It’s a tough 10-minute walk, but it is so worth the view.

There are good walking spots. I love Sawpit Gully.

We don’t really have any beaches, but Lake Hayes is my favourite place on earth. Sitting on the pontoon on a summer evening is where I’m happiest.

The drive through Gibbston Valley is great. Over to Cromwell, past all the gorgeous wineries, it’s really lovely.

When it comes to special creative spaces, I would be remiss not to mention Dorothy Browns again. It is truly the best. Please, go, and support independent cinemas!

I love listening to live music at the Blue Door. Or the Fork and Tap.

Every year, I look forward to Gay Ski Week. It’s such an iconic event.

Queenstown is my favourite place on earth. It is a contradiction: it’s a bustling and diverse city with great nightlife and yet, it is surrounded by breathtakingly beautiful sites where you can find utter seclusion and quiet. It has a little bit of everything for everyone.

N00b is screening now on Three Now.

Emma Gleason is the Herald’s deputy editor of lifestyle and entertainment (audience) and has worked on Viva for more than four years, contributing stories on culture, fashion and what’s going on in Auckland.

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