Conor Bowden is a filmmaker from Aotearoa New Zealand whose work has a particular focus on visual storytelling, often doing away with dialogue in favour of silent cinematic moments. Conor makes his films on the smell of an oily rag, believing that it is the integrity of a film that matters regardless of production scale.

This spirit has led him to films like Photobooth, a no-budget short made in his garage which became one of the first short films to be acquired by TVNZ On Demand. Conor then found success with his 2018 short film Feeding, which was placed 3rd in the V48 hours Film Festival.

Conor has since up-skilled as a director with his 2019 short The Social, funded through the Someday Stories initiative. The Social explored the high school experience of queer youth and the complexities of growing up in a heteronormative society. Recently Conor delved into the music video format with Warwick, his NZ on Air-funded video for legendary rock band The Bats. The video was made entirely in Covid-19 lockdown forcing Conor to work in front of and behind the camera. But the limitations worked in his favour, resulting in a darkly comedic take on the experience of living cut off from the outside world.

Now, Conor makes his films exclusively on iPhone, telling absurd and funny tales of humans living in close quarters. This year, Conor's short film The Flat was screened at Academy Award accredited film festival Short Shorts Film Festival and Asia. The film acts as a proof of concept for his upcoming feature film Home, Sweet Home - a satirical comedy about the housing crisis in New Zealand told in the style of a slapstick silent film. Aside from directing, Conor also works as an Editor. His most recent credits include the upcoming Lionsgate series Dark City - The Cleaner and Acorn TV’s Under the Vines.