Oscar Kightley

Oscar Kightley is a Samoan-New Zealand actor, writer, director and comedian who started as a journalist at the Auckland Star. In 1991 he moved to Christchurch to present the children's show Life in the Fridge Exists, where he took his first acting role in Simon Small's play Horizons. He helped found the Pacific Underground theater company and co-wrote Fresh off the Boat, which won a Media Peace Award. His plays include Dawn Raids, Island Girls and Niu Sila, and he received the Bruce Mason Playwriting Award in 1998. He acted in and co-wrote Sione's Wedding (2006), performed with the Naked Samoans, and helped write the animated series bro'Town. In 2013 he played the lead in the police drama Harry, which he co-wrote, and he directed episodes of Super City. His first screen directing credit was the 2021 documentary Dawn Raid, about the Dawn Raid Entertainment label. In 2009 he received the New Zealand Order of Merit.