Finding Your Voice & Tribe: In Conversation with Jerusha Hess

When you deep-dive into Jerusha Hess's slate, the same names turn up again and again. That's no accident. Over two decades, she and her collaborators have built the kind of working relationships that let a creative voice grow, and that loyalty shows up on screen.

From co-writing the cult classic Napoleon Dynamite (2004) to her directorial debut Austenland (2013) and her Oscar-nominated animated short Ninety-Five Senses (2024), Jerusha has made unmistakably original work alongside a tight circle of cast and crew she's returned to time and again. It's a reminder that a career isn't built alone, and that the people you choose to make things with matter as much as the ideas themselves.

WIFT NZ is delighted to host Jerusha Hess for an honest conversation about staying true to your originality, the value of long-term creative partnerships, and how finding the right people early can shape everything that follows. For all who are carving out their own creative path, this is one to bring your notebook to.

This session will be moderated by Zoe McIntosh, director of Stylebender (2023).

Date: Tuesday 21st July

Time: Drinks: 6:00pm | Panel: 6:30pm - 8:00pm

Location: St Columba Centre, 40 Vermont St, Ponsonby, Auckland

Free for WIFT, DEGANZ & NZWG Members, $25 for non-members. Drinks & Nibbles Provided.

About Jerusha Hess:

Jerusha Hess is an American screenwriter, director, and producer best known as a co-writer of the cult comedy classics Napoleon Dynamite (2004) and Nacho Libre (2006), both of which she developed with her husband and longtime creative collaborator Jared Hess. A graduate of Brigham Young University's film program, where she began her filmmaking partnership, she made her directorial debut with Austenland (2013), a romantic comedy at the Sundance Film Festival and nominated for the Grand Jury Prize. More recently, Hess moved into animation, earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Short Film for Ninety-Five Senses (2022). She also co-wrote the Netflix animated musical feature Thelma the Unicorn (2024). Across a career spanning two decades, her work is distinguished by a fondness for underdog characters and a singular comedic sensibility that has made her films enduring favourites.