Cook Islands News caught up with New Zealand film designer and make-up artist Kelly Mitchell, who is here on Rarotonga.

She is one of several film industry people who have decided to visit the island recently.

Mitchell said the reason for coming to Rarotonga was to relax while finishing writing her first short film and her television series and prop which she has been working on for over a year.

She said she is also here visiting friends and their families.

Mitchell said that over the years she has always thought about writing, but that it was only now that she decided to get into it.

“I came here to write and catch up with friends and whanau and to relax, she said.

“When I say relax, I’ve spent the last 10 days catching up with people.

“But I’ve let that 10 days be my social week, and now this week is to start my writing again,” she laughs.

Mitchell, who has been a make-up artist and designer in the film and television industry for 23 years has worked on a number of television shows and films including The Panthers, Filthy Rich, and The Dead Lands.

In the film industry, she is a make-up artist and designer who specializes in tattoo effects.

She has worked with a number of Kiwi and international celebrities and stars including Frankie Adams and Tom Cruise.

More recently she worked with Hollywood actor Benedict Cumberbatch and Kirsten Dunst on the film The Power of the Dog, which has been nominated for an Oscar and won a Golden Globe.

Mitchell said that after she had finished working on a feature film back in New Zealand that she decided it was time to take a break.

She said it was because of someone she worked with, that she decided to come to Rarotonga for a holiday too.

She said: “I was thinking about it, and then I got reminded again that this person was going and went, oh, I’m going to go (to Rarotonga).

“So within 4 days of finishing filming, I was on a plane here.”

Mitchell said that it wasn’t until she landed that she discovered there were other filmmakers on the island, including overseas-based Cook Islander and film-maker Charlene George.

Mitchell has also been in touch with script-supervisor Diane Moffat who has worked on Hollywood movies The Meg, Lord of The Rings, and 30 days of Night.

Moffat has been recently nominated for a Women In Film and Television (WIFT) NZ award, which celebrates the achievements of women in the industry.

Mitchell said: “When I landed I thought I was just catching up with her (Charlene) and her whanau for dinner, but when I arrived there was a whole table of filmmakers.

“I didn’t realise there were that many of us on the island.

“We are all here working on projects.”

When asked about what advice she could give to others wanting to make the jump or get into make-up, Mitchell says that “if you’ve got the time do your hairdressing”.

She says that with hair and make-up you can travel all over the world and that it’s a trade that you will never lose.

Mitchell said: “In New Zealand, you’ve got to earn your stripes, and the best way is to get in there and work hard.

She said: “It doesn’t matter what age you are or what you want to do, put yourself out there and find out who people are.