Which Peter Jackson film features the fictional New Zealand filmmaker Colin McKenzie?

Forgotten Silver features the fictional New Zealand filmmaker Colin McKenzie.

Peter Jackson and Costa Botes directed this 1995 mockumentary about a supposedly forgotten pioneer of cinema. The program presents fabricated archival footage, interviews, and discoveries to suggest that McKenzie invented major filmmaking techniques before better-known figures received credit.

The character is entirely fictional, and the film’s straight-faced style initially led some viewers to believe that the claims were real. Jackson and Botes created the joke by imitating the conventions of serious documentary television, including authoritative commentary and historical reconstruction.

Forgotten Silver was made for New Zealand television and later screened internationally. It is distinct from Jackson’s narrative features such as The Frighteners and Heavenly Creatures. The film is also an example of Jackson’s long-running interest in cinema history, practical effects, parody, and the boundary between documentary presentation and invention.