Graham Dunster grew up in London, England and after leaving school in 1972 fell into the world of media working at the sales office of HTV (formely Harlech Television) in London’s West End. From working ‘on the boards’ recording the sales and placement of tvcs for the Welsh ITV licence holder he progressed to deputy manager of the Traffic Department before decamping to New Zealand at the end of 1977, traveling on one of the last passenger ships making this trip. A relaxing four weeks at sea and a further nine months exploring NZ caused him to fall in love with the country and after a further nine months in Sydney and a five year period with STV (Scottish Television) back in London he returned to NZ in 1984.
For the next two years he once again explored the country, interspersed with a six month stint at the Gibson Group which included roadshowing THE SILENT ONE around the central North Island, screenings being held in town halls, maraes and other similar venues.
Newly wed, he and his wife Margot spent 1986 living on a narrowboat and touring the inland waterways of England with 1987 being similarly spent exploring Europe in a VW Kombi van. 1988 was a year for retiring debt and a timely return to NZ by Christmas of that year.
In 1989 Auckland Actors was set up and continues to the present day. The agency has been fortunate to be involved with most of the successful NZ films and television dramas since then, providing half the core cast for SHORTLAND STREET at its inception for example.
Becoming an actors agent has given Graham the opportunity to work with innumerable talented individuals across the industry and to represent many actors and actresses, some of whom have been fortunate to go on to reap national and international acclaim. Amongst these are Lucy Lawless, Karl Urban, Erik Thomson, Keisha Castle-Hughes and Antony Starr. Graham was privileged to be working with Keisha Castle-Hughes at the start of her career and thus experienced the Oscar madness surrounding her nomination.
Panel: Stepping up to the International Stage
