TVNZ uses AI to celebrate the return of provincial rugby

TVNZ has launched its first AI-assisted nationwide marketing campaign, celebrating the return of provincial rugby across New Zealand.

In partnership with New Zealand Rugby, the campaign promotes all 93 National Provincial Championship (NPC) matches being available free-to-view across TVNZ 1 and TVNZ+ for the first time in 30 years.

TVNZ chief revenue Ooficer Valerie Walshe says: “At TVNZ, our role is to amplify local voices and celebrate the diverse perspectives that make up New Zealand. 

“The NPC competition is a wonderful reflection of the pride and passion at the heart of our regions, and we can’t wait to bring this back into living rooms across Aotearoa.” 

Celebrate communities

TVNZ’s NPC campaign features unique characters generated by specialist AI tools and representing each of the 14 provincial unions in the competition.

Incorporating regional colours and local icons like the Manawatū Turbo bucketheads, each character was designed to celebrate the identity of its community.  

TVNZ general manager marketing Sally Falconer says: “Our team is constantly looking for ways to innovate, so it felt natural to explore how AI could support this nationwide campaign. 

“As one of the tools in our creative process, it helped us create realistic scenes, accelerate production timelines and create a diverse representation at a scale that would not have been possible without it. 

“Importantly, it did not replace human oversight with people remaining at the centre of every decision and sport presenter Scotty Stevenson lending his voice to the campaign.”

Represent the fans

When creating the imagery, TVNZ referred to census data, no images of real people were used, all AI-generated images were reverse image searched for likeness, iterative prompting was applied and traditional retouching was used. 

TVNZ also followed its published AI Guidelines, consulted with a Te Ao Māori expert and sought approval from New Zealand Rugby and the provincial unions involved. These layered checks and balances helped ensure communities were represented respectfully and appropriately, says the broadcaster.

Doug Tietjens, Manawatū Rugby CEO, says: “Provincial rugby fans are some of the most dedicated in the country, and this campaign really gets to the heart of that passion. Each provincial union has its own identity, and TVNZ has worked hard to get the look and feel right for each one. It’s great to see them using data and AI to create a campaign that represents fans in a respectful, fun and genuinely authentic way. 

“Our bucketheads are an iconic part of Manawatū Rugby’s identity, and as the NPC season kicks off, we look forward to seeing them around the province proudly backing the Turbos with energy, pride and positive support.” 

Walshe adds: “We want to use emerging technology in a way that strengthens the human connection in our storytelling. By using AI as a tool in this campaign, we’ve been able to help more New Zealanders see themselves reflected in coverage of a competition that means so much to their local communities.”

The campaign rolls out across Aotearoa in July on TVNZ channels, TVNZ+, social media, out of home and YouTube.