In November 1979 a man’s mutilated corpse was discovered submerged in a remote water-filled Lancashire quarry. Marty Johnstone, New Zealand businessman and head of an international drug empire had been betrayed and murdered by his best friend, Andy Maher. After years of running the drug importation trade into New Zealand and having made millions of dollars in profits, all Marty Johnstone had left at the time of his death was Patek Philippe & Co. Watch, a Chinese medallion and $200 in cash. Underbelly NZ: Land Of The Long Green Cloud is the New Zealand story of the real Mr Asia, Marty Johnstone and New Zealand’s first ever drug cartel, The Syndicate. The story of how a boy from Auckland’s North Shore became an international playboy with an industrial scale global drug empire. A true event in New Zealand’s history that is almost Shakespearean in its charting of the rise and fall of this extraordinary character, who due to a penchant for his own product and a misplaced trust in his friends, ultimately became the architect of his own demise. Set in the 70s when New Zealand’s most notorious criminals and young entrepreneurs got together to grow a small-scale Kiwi operation that soon gained momentum, eventually spawning a cartel that spanned the globe. This is essentially a coming of age story, where sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll held New Zealand in its thrall, where big dreams became a glittering reality and living in the fast lane was de rigour. Based on true events, Underbelly NZ: Land Of The Long Green Cloud is a six-part drama series that covers the incredible events that put New Zealand’s criminal world on the map and still resonates to this day.
Underbelly NZ: Land of the Long Green Cloud Screentime NZ Ltd
Go Girls Season 4 South Pacific Pictures
Nothing Trivial South Pacific Pictures
Best Director - Entertainment/Factual
Julie Christie The Block NZ
Peter Young Get Fresh with Al Brown
Mike Smith Underbelly NZ: Land of the Long Green Cloud
Underbelly NZ: Land Of The Long Green Cloud launched on TV3 on 17th August 2011. The premiere episode achieved 29 - 30% share in all the key demos and won the slot for all the key demos.