New Air New Zealand safety video: become a Maori guardian

Social curation for carriers is increasingly important. Airlines have specialized in digital communication, as well demonstrated by Air New Zealand. Managing to intrigue passengers even before they board is now common practice. However, there are those who clearly outdo the competition with ingenious ideas.

In recent years we have witnessed a kind of long-distance struggle in the flying world regarding safety videos. Some focus on spectacular effects, some on timeless cinematic elegance, and some on stunts. How can we forget the famous video of Emirates, which showed a hostess on top of the Burj Khalifa. Special effects? No, far from it. A second video then showed the complex behind-the-scenes. We now see Air New Zealand's latest idea.

New Air New Zealand safety video

Those who follow Air New Zealand on social know how the carrier is wont to release at least a couple of safety videos a year. Considering how the doors in Oceania have been reopened, with borders to be crossed in both Australia and New Zealand, such a social launch was to be expected.

The carrier has released its first video on the subject after a two-year absence, and inside there is even room for a flying canoe. The main goal is to enhance Maori culture. We therefore follow Tiaki, a man getting on a waka rererangi, that is, a flying canoe, so as to embark on an adventure through Aotearoa.

He visits four Maori guardians:

• Papatuanuku: ground
• Tangaroa: sea
• Tane Mahuta: forest
• Ranginui: sky

Safety video: the message from Air New Zealand

Joining Tiaki on his own journey is a character named Julie, who is supposed to represent the rest of New Zealand. The message of this security video? Always show respect for this magical land. In fact transforming into one of the four guardians, so as to personally protect the land.

The carrier's brand and marketing general manager spoke on the matter, Jeremy O'Brien: "We want tourism to come back and be better than in the past. It is our intention to encourage visitors to act as guardians of our country. The videos we produce are famous all over the world and give us an opportunity, that of educating and inspiring. It is essential to be good hosts and good visitors."

Julie's character is crucial in this discourse, since she explains how Tiaki cannot do everything on his own. Anyone who sets foot in New Zealand must understand how crucial land conservation is. Every visitor is personally responsible for it, albeit in his or her own small way.

This spectacular new video made its debut on board Air New Zealand aircraft on May 9, 2022. The production involved numerous LED screens, but most importantly, state-of-the-art motion technology that enabled a linear transition between the real and imaginative worlds. Cinematic effects that are surprising in no small part, highlighting how the company places enormous importance on these films, steeped in messages for the present and the future.