Originally published: October 19, 2015

As a child Rayner told his parents that when he left school he would be able to spend all the time he wanted behind a computer, a dream he made a reality.
Rayner moved to Wellington in 2001 to work at MediaLab and has kept himself busy programming android apps, designing games and creating 2D and 3D animations, all while teaching the wonder of music and technology.

He said the most exciting thing about working with the children was that he was opening the door towards an exciting future for some of them.

“[The] world is going to need top app designers, game designers or movie makers. Who’s to say they aren’t sitting in these classes coming through in any day?”

Rayner helped singer Kimbra write and record her first couple of songs and even shot her first music video.

“She would probably kill me if I showed anyone, but it was fun.”

He also worked closely with Toni Gibson and Greer Samuels, who have gone on to have successful careers on stage and screen.

Rayner has some musical honours himself – he won third best original song at the Waikato rock awards and had his high school band signed to Tim Finn’s label.

His latest work enables children to head into a virtual reality.
MediaLab’s inventive programme allows children to make and explore their own 3D world with the help of Google Cardboard headsets, which work by slotting a smartphone into the viewer.  Rayner says they cost about $10, as opposed to the $450+ a device like an Oculus would set you back.

“We try to do programmes people can leave at the end of the day and carry on at home.”

– Sourced from The Wellingtonian