Table of Contents
My Covid Story is an independently made New Zealand documentary that captures a lived account of the Covid years, a perspective many will recognise, yet one obviously absent from mainstream media narratives. Through filmmaker Grant Dixon’s personal journey, the film traces the realities of lockdowns, vaccine mandates, protests and the personal impact these had on all corners of life for families, communities and Kiwis across New Zealand.
Initially supportive of the government’s measures, Grant quickly realised just how harmful they were, not only to his own life and work but to the wider community. Alongside his wife, a nurse who was forced out of her role due to vaccine mandates, they became living examples of how policies intended to protect could instead disrupt and devastate lives.
This film stands as testimony, recording experiences that were mostly overlooked or left out of the public conversation during the Covid years. It reflects the stories of many New Zealanders whose lives were disrupted in ways that were not always acknowledged, examined, or remembered. As the country awaits the final report from the Royal Commission of Inquiry Phase 2 into C-19, this documentary stands as an important record. One that invites reflection, accountability and a more honest conversation about the experimental mRNA vaccine.
NZDSOS is pleased to help promote this film as part of the broader pursuit of truth, transparency, and vaccine honesty in New Zealand. Throughout the pandemic, the government promoted “the team of five million”, yet a culture emerged in which personal experiences that did not fit the official narrative were ignored or quietly sidelined, with an obvious reluctance to engage. Every perspective matters, and every lived experience is vital in the pursuit of truth, because a healthy society must uphold its tolerance for different opinions and different experiences.
Watch: ‘My Covid Story’ by Grant Dixon
‘My Covid Story’
Press release
In January 2026, one month before the release of the second New Zealand Royal Commission Covid 19 Inquiry report, New Zealand’s own Covid story, My Covid Story premiered on X (Twitter) via @MyCovidStry and on Facebook. The film is available to view for free.
This is a one-and-a-half hour feature length documentary, made by Kiwi film maker Grant Dixon.
Reviews:
Noted New Zealand lawyer Sue Grey has viewed the film and commented; “Wow! That is so powerful Grant. When you put it all together the way you have it’s so compelling. Brilliantly done.” Another reviewer commented: “I found myself moved to tears on multiple occasions. The film was beautiful, sensitive and very impactful.”
What it’s about:
This film traces the first five Covid years, from lockdowns to vaccine mandates and protests through Grant’s eyes.
On 26th of March 2020 New Zealand entered the first of many Covid-19 lockdowns, which dragged on for more than two-and-a-half years. It was feared that there would be a 20 per cent fatality rate, so Kiwis willingly followed their leaders’ directions and kept indoors, except for exercise and food shopping.
This documentary initially tracks the experiences of film director Grant Dixon, his wife and their Hobsonville Point community as they stopped work and moved online to socially interact. This included Grant being rushed to hospital following a dramatic head injury while out running. Due to lockdown rules most of his family were banned from visiting, even though his injuries could have proved fatal.
It all changed in February 2021 when the Pfizer vaccination programme was announced, and then it changed again in October when all health workers were mandated to take the vaccines. Grant’s wife being a community nurse then had to decide whether to take the shot or lose her job. She decided not to take the shot. Then at her online exit interview an extraordinary event unravelled as an ambulance and fire brigade emergency unfolded next door .
This documentary tracks how the lockdowns and vaccine programme affected family events and community activities, such as a choir, community gardens and a local park run. The rise in civil unrest is also tracked, including multiple street protests and the convoy to Wellington’s Parliament and resulting police stand-off. Then telling statistics for seniors’ ‘all cause deaths’, gained from official documents, are tracked as the doses and deaths mount. Grant’s five-year journey then culminates in a personal bereavement.
Award Winning Producer:
Previously Grant worked as a National Film Unit Producer/Director, where he made a range of films from natural history to children’s mime. Grant then became an independent television programme and video maker, and made documentaries for TVNZ and TV3. These include the 1996 Earthquakes documentary that predicted the destructive outcomes of the 22nd February 2011 Christchurch quake. A recut has received over 145,000 YouTube views. Today Grant continues to produce, write, direct and edit documentaries that pick up on social issues. Having learned all of the required skills for film production over a long career, Grant now produces his documentaries by himself from start to end.
Since 2015 Grant has made four long-form documentaries, the first three of which were successfully shown on local broadcast television. All four films were accepted into international film festivals and have won awards, including for ‘Best Documentary’ and ‘Best Editing’. Grant’s latest film, My Covid Story, was accepted as a semi-finalist at the 2025 Synergy Film Festival, and won ‘Best Editing’ and ‘Best Message’ at the 2025 Top Indie Film Awards.
Grant’s previous feature-length documentary was: The Big Fat Lie, in which he traces his journey from over-weight heart-attack survivor, to full health on a whole-food plant-based diet. This film has won a number or awards, toured the country and continues to sell internationally on iTunes and other platforms.
Grant also holds a master’s in communications from Victoria University. As well, Grant has a podcast channel: Vaccine Questions on Bitchute.
My Covid Story is viewable on X (Twitter), Facebook, YouTube and Rumble for free, for as long as these platforms allow it to be screened. It will be very interesting to see how the messages in this film mesh with the royal commission’s findings.
This article was originally published by New Zealand Doctors Speaking Out With Science.
