Born and raised in Auckland, New Zealand, and beginning his career as a child actor, Gabriel Reid was “bitten by the bug” at an early age. Across a wide range of stage and screen projects, he has worked as a writer, producer, director and actor. He has appeared on screen in 'Shortland Street', 'Street Legal', 'Outrageous Fortune' and 'We’re Here to Help'. He has been an assistant director on feature films, including 'Kiwi Christmas' and 'Prince Caspian'.
Gabriel was instrumental in establishing the company known today as New Zealand Opera. He was the second staff member hired by the company. Over five years, working alongside such luminaries as Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, he served in a range of capacities; an assistant director on some operas, marketing officer on others. Independently of the opera company, his celebrated Maidment Theatre production of 'The Crucible' (which he directed and designed) was cited by former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has having "such a huge impact on me" that it helped awaken her to the power of the performing arts.
During years on staff at TVNZ, Gabriel created high-profile network idents and award-winning promotional campaigns. His creative output has garnered Promax, Tropfest and Writers Guild awards and his short films have played at major international festivals. His recent short film 'Impossible' was awarded Best Short Film by the New Zealand Cinematographers Society.
Dr Reid secured his Ph.D. in Film Studies with a thesis researched at Pixar, Industrial Light & Magic, DreamWorks and Weta Digital. His M.A. thesis, examining Shakespeare on screen, was researched at the Royal Shakespeare Company, Royal National Theatre and Renaissance Films. At Unitec Institute of Technology, he has lectured on Film History and New Zealand Cinema. He served ten years on the board of the Directors and Editors Guild, including two terms as vice president, and five years on the board of Film Auckland.
As a writer-director-producer, he is actively developing a slate of theatre, film and television projects.