I wanted to start this way.
It almost seemed like a home movie.
Can you describe how it evolved?
Jacinda Ardern appears in Prime Minister by Lindsay Utz and Michelle Walshe, an official selection of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Radio New ZealandCourtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Radio New Zealand
The result was a treasure trove of material.
Was this originally a document for posterity, your daughter?
JACINDA ARDERN: Its a great question.
Id already been doing that.
Part it was just I wanted to keep a record for myself, for my family.
But it’s possible for you to see that often I was a reluctant participant.
ARDERN: I think that is fair, though it probably built on an existing passion that I had.
But shes been a motivator for so many things.
Suddenly, the press narrative becomes, can you govern while youre a breastfeeding mother?
How galling was that for you?
Youve progressed through your party and become the prime minister, and this is what they are asking you?
I didnt always like it.
I am not be the first woman whos experienced that.
It was just very, it was public.
It would never occur to me that it would be an impediment to running a country.
ARDERN: Do you know what I appreciated that we were just discussing?
The depth of the applause for Clark at the premiere.
And so it was great to give an insight to him as well.
But you dont do it all alone.
No, thats a crazy conceit.
Which of those was hardest to navigate to get the results you got?
ARDEN: Gosh, they were all hard.
But abortion law reform, that was a conscience vote in New Zealand.
We have an incredible system, where you vote on certain issues.
You dont have to vote on a party line.
You vote according to your conscience.
So that was about building consensus and shepherding a piece of law through the other challenges.
Those others are the unexpected crises that you sometimes face in leadership.
Covid was a global experience, and it was difficult for everyone.
DEADLINE: The mass shooting was a horrible chapter and we see the toll it took on you.
Here, gun-backing legislators deflect the issue.
Why it does here in this country far too?
And thats why ultimately I believe, and yes, we did move quickly.
Im not going to diminish that.
You live here now and so youve obviously observed the way it works here.
What is the big difference that allowed you to lead the government to do these progressive things?
We have something called MMP [Mixed Member Proportional].
It means that we often have multiple parties in government.
And so its a different system.
Perhaps its because they know that that vote counts.
But again, Im only speaking to New Zealand system.
DEADLINE: It doesnt sound like there was much regret after the banning of those semi-automatic weapons.
Is that still in place?
ARDERN: It is, yeah.
DEADLINE: Then, like every leader of every country, you are hit with the Covid-19 pandemic.
Your attention to go against that grain to save lives is laudable when you look back.
Why did you handle it that way?
And do you have any regrets when you look back?
ARDERN: Well, I hope you saw in the film that thought process.
DEADLINE: You closed the borders, and held the outbreaks in check.
ARDERN: I hope that the viewer sees that it is just decision making in real time.
Often, you see the decision, you dont often see the choices.
So I think thats what the film tries to do.
It provides the context.
You see the choices that are there.
Maybe something that you wanted to get done but couldnt?
I came in because I believed in equality and reducing inequality.
I believed in addressing child poverty.
