The Democracy Crisis, A Bryan Bruce Production.

Donald Trump’s re-election as the 47th President of the United States highlights a growing crisis in democracy affecting many Western nations, including New Zealand.

Here at home, international corporations and wealthy individuals are wielding undue influence over our neoliberal government, which welcomes offshore “investors” that exploit our resources and damage our environment.

To better understand this issue, we’re focusing on a specific example: the proposed gold mining operation in the Coromandel State Rainforest. By unpacking this story, we aim to expose the deeper problems driving this crisis.

In our upcoming investigative documentary, filmmaker Bryan Bruce and Director of Photography Conan Fitzpatrick will reveal how a Canadian mining company lobbied New Zealand’s right-wing coalition government to approve a massive project: a 7-kilometre tunnel beneath the protected Kauri trees of Wharekirauponga. This fragile ecosystem, home to unique species, faces destruction in the name of profit.

This is a story about how big money is undermining democracy, bending rules to serve its interests while disregarding people and the environment. It’s a story mainstream broadcasters won’t tell.

That’s why we’re crowdfunding The Democracy Crisis documentary to screen in cinemas across Aotearoa/New Zealand before the 2026 election. But we need your support to make it happen.

Join us in funding this critical film and help shine a light on the fight for democracy and justice.