They pulled out all the stops for last night's premiere of 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' - even going as far as falling snow.

About 2,000 people packed into Auckland's Civic Theatre for the film's debut in this country. At the door they were greeted by polar bears carved from ice and real-life huskies.

Some guests thought the snow falling from the ceiling was a stroke of genius while others got their kicks from hobnobbing with the stars.

Helen Clark and Don Brash walked the red-carpet, along with a host of other well-known locals.

The premiere of the Andrew Adamson-directed movie is seen as a dream come true for one of the actors. Shane Rangi plays the part of the minotaur 'General Otmin', the leader of the White Witch's army.

He says being at last night's premiere at Auckland's Civic Theatre, with the place decked out as a winter wonderland, was like a dream.

Shane Rangi says as a child he always wanted to walk through the wardrobe into Narnia, but even on set he did not get the opportunity to see it. So he says being at the premiere with the falling snow and the real-life huskies was brilliant.

Elizabeth Hawthorne, who plays the fierce housekeeper Mrs MacReady, was also at the premiere. The child stars and director Andrew Adamson, meanwhile, were in London for yesterday's world premiere.

Meanwhile Prime Minister Helen Clark says she is determined to cash in on the continuing success of the New Zealand film industry.

Miss Clark asks when was there ever a time when two of the big three Christmas films came from Kiwi directors. She says the Government hopes to use the success of the films to bring more tourists to New Zealand and promote everything the country has to offer.