Christchurch's "Goldilocks" balance between size, affordability and outdoor opportunities makes it the best place to a Kiwi, new research says.

Consultancy Interbrand carried out extensive interviews with 50 local businesspeople, politicians, community leaders, and residents about how they saw Christchurch.

Christchurch Airport is using the research to champion a new drive to put the city on the global map and tell its post-earthquake story.

DEAN KOZANIC/STUFF A clear Christchurch morning in Hagley Park.

The flagship of the campaign is a new promotional video that claims Christchurch is "the best place in the world to be a Kiwi".

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The video aimed to give the city a "story" and was created by award-winning director Peter Young, who filmed the 2015 documentary The Art of Recovery on post-earthquake Christchurch.

DAVID HALLETT/FAIRFAX NZ Sunrise over Pegasus Bay looking from Redcliffs.

Christchurch Airport chief executive Malcolm Johns said the city was not just the best place to be a Kiwi, it was the best place "to live the Kiwi dream".

The researchers found the Kiwi dream was to grow, connect, and find balance in life. More practically, it was about finding a balance between affordable housing, education, healthcare, meaningful jobs, social life, and access to the outdoors.

Johns said other cities around New Zealand, and even the world, offered some of the benefits.

PETER YOUNG/SUPPLIED Caleb and Hannah Jansen explore the Margaret Mahy Family Playground in Christchurch while filming A Christchurch Story.

Auckland offered an attractive job market, but presented massive barriers in areas like housing, he said.

Christchurch's advantage was a "Goldilocks" balance: not too big, not too small.

The immediate attraction for Kiwis was the close access to the sea, ski fields, hiking trails, and variety of outdoor activities in stunning settings.

Iain McGregor The view from Scarborough Hill back to Sumner and the city.

It was backed up by the advantages of a big city. People of all trades could get on the housing ladder, there were plenty of amusements, and there was a connection to the rest of the world through the airport, port, excellent broadband, and international companies.

City missioner Michael Gorman, who appears in Young's video, said residents should congratulate themselves on how far the city had come since the earthquakes.

"Of course, there's a lot more to be done."

Particular attention needed to be paid to Christchurch's disaffected, he said.

"The city doesn't just belong to those who can afford it. It belongs to everyone."

Young, who lived in Christchurch through the earthquakes, believed residents loved Christchurch's connection with the surrounding natural resources.

"Almost everyone we spoke to across the board were there for the land, for the proximity."

Young noticed a common feeling of "revival and regrowth" from the interviewees.

Johns said the video's primary purpose was to help the airport champion Christchurch, Canterbury, and the South Island on the global stage.

"It's just collecting up what people feel, shaping it. We want to be able to tell people what our city is and where it's going."

The research and video production was part of the ongoing discussion about Christchurch's future, so the video was meant to be shared and used by anyone.

Open debate often degenerated into arguing over the small points where people disagree, so the airport wanted to put out a representation of the "80 to 90 per cent" that the interviewees agreed on, he said.

"I've always held this belief in the two years that I've been here that [Christchurch] actually has an image and a direction," Johns said.

"The story is already there; you don't need to completely reinvent something different."

The city had "lost a bit of confidence to tell its own story" though, he said.

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