Photo caption: The University of Canterbury’s Production and Post-Production Building at Kōawa Studios
University of Canterbury’s Kōawa Studios has been recognised at the 2026 Property Council New Zealand Rider Levett Bucknall Property Industry Awards, with UC’s new Production and Post-Production Building winning the Colliers Project Leaders Education Property Award.
Located at Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury (UC)’s Dovedale Campus, Kōawa Studios brings together commercial-grade film, gaming and mixed reality production spaces with teaching and collaboration areas, giving students direct access to the tools, workflows and environments used by industry.
UC Executive Dean of Arts Professor Kevin Watson says the award is a proud moment for the University and for the growing creative technology sector in Waitaha Canterbury.
“The facilities were created with a clear purpose: to give our students the opportunity to learn inside a professional production environment, while also supporting industry to work, collaborate and innovate here in the South Island.
“This recognition reflects the vision, expertise and collaboration of many people across UC and our project partners. It also speaks to the future we are building for screen and creative technology in Aotearoa.”
Kōawa Studios supports UC’s Bachelor of Digital Screen (Hons) students with specialist spaces for post-production, gaming, sound and mixed reality. Students are exposed to industry practice and professional production environments, helping them graduate with experience that reflects real-world production.
The facilities also support capstone projects, collaborative research, commercial production and industry partnerships across film, gaming and immersive media.
The award follows further recognition for Kōawa Studios, with UC’s Jack Mann Theatre also named a Gold Award winner at the 2026 Master Builders Commercial Project Awards. The project transformed former dance studios into a Dolby-certified theatre and commercial sound stages, with a focus on adaptive reuse of the existing structure to reduce waste and embodied carbon.
Together, the projects reflect UC’s investment in spaces that support industry-ready skills, creative innovation and new opportunities for students and practitioners in Aotearoa New Zealand’s screen and creative technology sectors.
The new building was developed by UC, constructed by Southbase Construction and designed by Ignite Architects.
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