Broadcasting ākonga provide live national futsal finals coverage

_{NZBS ākonga and their kaiako (tutors) were at the helm of the event broadcast on Freeview channel 200} 

Ākonga (students) from Ara Institute of Canterbury's New Zealand Broadcasting School (NZBS) have successfully delivered live coverage of the 2026 Tertiary Futsal Championship Finals at Christchurch's Parakiore Recreation and Sport Centre.

The ambitious production challenged first-year screen students to lead a large-scale outside broadcast, supported by fellow students from NZBS radio and journalism programmes.

Working from both Parakiore and the NZBS production hub on Southwark Street at Ara's City campus, students took on roles across presenting, commentary, camera operation and production as part of a live national broadcast.

NZBS Tutor Kerry Du Pont said the event provided students with a rare opportunity to apply their skills in a demanding real-world environment.

"This was a large production with a lot of moving parts, but a great educational experience too.

"Our outside broadcast was delivered in the 'remote production' style, which is increasingly common across the world. Cameras and audio were at the venue, and the rest of the production was a few kilometres away at our hub.

"Broadcasters like Sky and TVNZ operate the same remote model, where technology allows for real-time transfer of pictures and sound."

The production was delivered in partnership with Kordia's CH200 platform and worked alongside Engage Live, which provided livestream coverage of the three-day tournament.

The project gave students hands-on experience in the collaborative environment of a live sports broadcast, requiring presenters, commentators, camera operators and production teams to work together in real time.

NZBS Portfolio Manager Peter Nock said he was proud of what ākonga achieved and expressed his appreciation to University and Tertiary Sport New Zealand (UTSNZ) for partnering with Ara on the project.

"Experiences like this give our learners the chance to apply their knowledge in a real-life, fast-paced setting.

"We're grateful to University and Tertiary Sport New Zealand for creating opportunities like this, which help build skills and confidence in the next generation of broadcasters."

UTSNZ Executive Director Sarah Anderson said working with NZBS was a fantastic example of an academic-sport partnership in action.

"What really stood out was seeing students excel off the court just as much as the athletes were excelling on it. Like the teams competing, the NZBS students had put in the preparation beforehand and then had to perform under real pressure. Their confidence, professionalism and skill really shone through," Anderson said.

"This project shows what can happen when academic programmes use sporting events as a genuine learning environment.

"We'd love to see more academic departments explore how events like this can create meaningful real-world opportunities for their students. It's been great working with NZBS and we're excited about where the partnership could go next."

_{Ākonga alongside their kaiako Kerry Du Pont in the TV control room at NZBS} 

First-year Bachelor of Broadcasting Communications (Screen) ākonga Lilly Hansen, who was a director's assistant on the coverage, said the intensity of producing something for broadcast rather than "as live" in a classroom environment was very real.

"It certainly raised the stakes, both in terms of delivering quality output and the level of excitement," Hansen said.

"My main takeaway was how everyone had to work together to produce something we were proud of. It feels incredibly satisfying to have my name attached to this project and have people say, 'Hey, I saw you in the credits'."

The 2026 Tertiary Futsal Championship Finals formed part of UTSNZ's National Tertiary Championship Series, which brings together top university teams from across New Zealand to compete for national titles.

While the final whistle has blown on this project, NZBS ākonga are already looking ahead to their next challenge.

This week they'll pitch ideas for the 2026 edition of Extravaganza, the school's flagship end-of-year multi-media project involving students from across all NZBS learning streams.

Find out about applying to study at NZBS here: New Zealand Broadcasting School - Ara