Auburn’s Kristi L. Simkins was named one of five finalists – one of only two Americans – in the 100% Pure New Zealand Presents Your Big Break short film competition today.

Simkins was one of the more than 1,000 aspiring directors from around the globe who entered a screenplay for a three-minute short film that captured the spirit of New Zealand.

Simpkins’ entry, “Something Special,” was one the five short films chosen by

Academy Award-winning producer Barrie Osborne (“The Lord of the Rings”) and a panel of judges.

Simkins now will travel to Queenstown, New Zealand, where she will work with Osborne at a world-class post-production facility. Collectively, they will shoot and direct a short film, capturing the essence of the world’s youngest country.

The five finalists will produce their films in New Zealand in early February.

Academy Award-winning director Sir Peter Jackson will select the winning entry among the five finalists. After Jackson personally views and judges the films, he will select the overall winner whose film will air on the Independent Film Channel prior to the Spirit Awards live broadcast on March 5 (8 p.m. PST).

In addition, the finalists’ films will premiere at the 25th Film Independent Spirit Awards and on the Your Big Break Web site, www.your-big-break.com.

“I am a screenwriter and aspiring director. I am also passionate, creative, flexible, and extremely hard-working,” Simkins wrote on www.your-big-break.com.

Simkins joins Aya Tanimora (Santa Monica, Calif.), Andrés Borghi (Buenos Aires) and Tim McLachlan and Rajneel Singh (both from Auckland, New Zealand) in the final field of five.

“The diversity of excellent entries demonstrates the passion people have for New Zealand,” said Tourism New Zealand Chief Executive Kevin Bowler. “Many of the screenplays capture the spirit of New Zealand including the country’s extraordinary landscapes, people and culture; the judges had their work cut out for them selecting just four.”

All of the finalists are aspiring filmmakers who’ve dabbled in multiple aspects of the entertainment industry.

The protagonist in Simkins’s film, “Something Special,” seeks to fulfill a promise with his trip to New Zealand.

“I have carefully crafted what I believe is a compelling short film that can be produced in the limited time frame and budget of this project,” Simkins summed up on www.your-big-break.com. “I describe several different locations in the script in order to show off the wonders of New Zealand; however, because the visual footage requires only one actor and no dialogue, this footage can be shot quickly.”