Rob was given his Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit today for services to the film and television industries today.

Rob was among the other high-achieving business people who received official insignia at today's investiture ceremony at Government House in Auckland.

American-born film and television producer Rob Tapert, who has lived in Auckland with his family for 22 years, today received insignia of a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his services to the film and television industries.

Tapert last year got his New Zealand citizenship after 26 years of travelling to and from the country for various entertainment business projects.

"I feel honoured and I feel slightly overwhelmed," he said. "I'm [now] part of a group of people who actually in their own way built a better community."

Tapert has been involved in New Zealand's screen industry since 1993, bringing projects into New Zealand from major production studios. He has produced a number of feature films and television shows including 'Hercules: The Legendary Journeys', 'Xena' and 'Spartacus'.

'Hercules' and 'Xena' provided more than seven years of continuous employment to hundreds of people in the industry, including local actors and film crews.

His efforts for engaging New Zealanders as heads of departments on his productions under the production company Pacific Renaissance, and others, were acknowledged today, along with his efforts to keep post-production of projects within the country.

"New Zealand has been a wonderful place [to work]."

Tapert recently got involved with play production, including with musical production Pleasure Dome, and as a result of has become involved with companies doing ticketing and venue management. He now works with software company QED Software on set construction and venue management which has had huge success in New York.

Source: NZ Herald