The University of Canterbury’s Kōawa Post Production Building brings students and screen professionals together in one commercial-grade production facility. The project won Excellence and Best in Category in the Colliers Project Leaders Education Property Award at the 2026 Property Industry Awards.
Designed to bridge the gap between study and industry, Kōawa invites students into a working screen-production environment. Developed for the University of Canterbury Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha, the Kōawa Post Production Building is more than a teaching building — it’s a creative hub where students, researchers, and screen professionals can operate side by side in a commercial-grade environment.
Set across an 11-hectare site, the purpose-built facility supports students enrolled in the Bachelor of Digital Screen programme, while creating one of New Zealand’s most advanced spaces for film, gaming, sound recording and mixed-reality production. From the outset, the goal was to bring education and industry into the same space. Students can learn in the same environments used for professional productions, gaining hands-on experience with the tools, workflows and expectations of the contemporary screen sector. Fourth-year capstone projects, postgraduate research and commercial productions are all part of the same ecosystem.
That’s particularly significant for the South Island, which has had fewer large-scale screen-production facilities than Auckland or Wellington. Kōawa helps change that equation, giving Canterbury a sophisticated production base, while strengthening regional capability and talent retention. For industry, the facility can accommodate a TVC and small- to mid-size productions, with access to stages, post-production and digital workflows.
Designed for evolving production technology, the facility combines specialist studios and editing suites with a publicly bookable 50-seat cinema, supporting industry partnerships, commercial hire and future-focused creative education.
The name Kōawa, meaning watercourse, references Waitaha Canterbury’s braided rivers and the coming together of multiple creative streams. This is reflected in a building designed to create everything from film and animation to games, virtual production and post-production.
For construction company Southbase there was a lot to consider. Technically, the project demanded a highly specialised response. Acoustic isolation, vibration control and stringent technical performance were central to the brief. A major construction milestone was the installation of the 34-tonne roof structure using a coordinated dual-crane lift, helping achieve the large-span requirements of the sound-stage spaces.
Internally, the building houses specialist production and editing environments supported by robust power, data, and mechanical systems, along with teaching areas and collaborative zones. Services designed for flexibility can adapt as production technology continues to evolve.
Kōawa’s distinctive façade ensures the production facility stands out on the University of Canterbury campus. Cultural narratives, designed with mana whenua, hint at the storytelling that is created
Externally, the architecture avoids the anonymous industrial feel often associated with studio buildings. The façade incorporates layered cladding systems, an angled canopy and a folded rainscreen animated with controlled lighting and projection capability. Cultural narratives, designed alongside mana whenua, continue inside through precast elements and bespoke illuminated detailing, giving the project a distinct identity within the campus setting.
Sustainability was embedded throughout, with locally sourced materials prioritised where possible, operational efficiency supported by a centralised building management system, and construction carefully managed near the adjacent stream.
The project was delivered by Southbase under budget and one month ahead of schedule following a shift to a design-build procurement model. Despite supply-chain pressures, acceleration measures and re-sequenced construction enabled teaching to commence as planned.
For the university, the long-term value proposition extends beyond the building itself. The facility is designed to attract enrolments, strengthen industry partnerships and generate commercial revenue through studio hire and production use. There’s even a publicly bookable 50-seat boutique cinema. Early productions have already begun using the precinct, underlining the real-world demand for such a space.
For Christchurch and the wider South Island, Kōawa is more than a university project. It’s an investment in the future of New Zealand’s creative economy.
KŌAWA POST PRODUCTION BUILDING
129 Waimairi Road, Ōtautahi Christchurch
OWNER UNIVERSITY OF CANTERBURY
DEVELOPER UNIVERSITY OF CANTERBURY
CONSTRUCTION SOUTHBASE CONSTRUCTION
ARCHITECT IGNITE ARCHITECTS
SERVICE ENGINEER POWELL FENWICK
STRUCTURAL ENGINEER HOLMES
MECHANICAL ENGINEER POWELL FENWICK
BUILDING ENCLOSURE ENGINEER BG & E
QUANTITY SURVEYOR RIDER LEVETT BUCKNALL
PROJECT MANAGER RUBIX
ACOUSTICS MARSHALL DAY
Photo credit: Neil Macbeth