It's official: Top of the Lake will not return to the Head of the Lake.
The second series of the acclaimed television crime drama, co-written and directed by Oscar-winning New Zealander Jane Campion, has been confirmed, but this time it will not be filmed at locations around Queenstown. It will be set and shot in Sydney.
Inside Film Australia magazine reported Campion and co-writer Gerard Lee were working on the script for the second series, with pre-production set to begin in December.
The announcement confirms what Glenorchy resident and Campion friend, Christine Kelly, told the Otago Daily Times last October.
The six-part series, which was nominated for eight Emmys and won one for best cinematography for a TV movie or miniseries, screened in New Zealand in 2013.
Described by critics as dark and atmospheric, it told the story of a detective - played by American actress Elizabeth Moss - investigating the disappearance of a pregnant 12-year-old girl.
It was shot over four months at locations in and around Glenorchy and Queenstown in 2012, and involved up to 200 cast and crew members. Glenorchy Community Association chairman Pete Reid was disappointed.
The magazine reported Australian and British film and TV company See-Saw Films would again produce the series, commissioned by BBC2.
Moss would return as Detective Robin Griffin, this time investigating a criminal case in Sydney. Campion would direct along with a co-director.
