DEGANZ Members in the Māoriland Mix

This year marks the 12th annual Māoriland Film Festival (MFF), with many DEGANZ members’ mahi in the mix.

MFF is the world’s largest celebration of Indigenous storytelling with a wide range of of screenings, interactive installation and art exhibitions, industry events, and more. This year 130 films and digital works from 86 indigenous nations are screening across the five-day festival. It will run from March 26-30 2025 in Ōtaki on the Kapiti Coast.

Festival director Madeline Hakaraia de Young commented on this year’s theme in the festival’s lineup announcement,

‘Ko te mauri, he mea huna ki te Moana’ is a whakataukī that speaks of the life force of the ocean and the life force within us all. […] When we were programming this year’s festival, we watched stories that evidence these profound changes all over the planet told through an Indigenous lens. We also saw stories of resilience, ingenuity and courage informed by generations of knowledge. Indigenous communities have solutions and we hope visitors to Māoriland will leave this year’s festival activated and inspired.

Congratulations to the members selected!

Features

Kōkā

Editor: Te Rurehe Paki

Under the celestial guidance of Matariki, Maori elder Hamo and local delinquent Jo form an unlikely bond on a road trip. As they confront past traumas and each face their demons, their shared path becomes a journey of healing, community and reconciliation.

Kōkā is the festival’s opening night film.

Tinā

Editor: Luke Haigh

Grieving the loss of her daughter in the Christchurch earthquakes, Mareta reluctantly becomes a substitute teacher at an elite private school. There, she discovers students yearning for guidance and inspiration. Drawing on her cultural roots, she forms a choir and leads her students toward the prestigious Big Sing competition.

The Haka Party Incident

Writer, Director, Producer: Katie Wolfe

The last New Zealand War happened in 1979. It lasted three minutes. On May 1st, 1979, a group of young Maori and Pasifika activists, He Taua, confronted a gathering of University of Auckland engineering students as they rehearsed their ‘mock’ haka for their capping parade. The fracas that followed prompted the nation to confront systemic racism and instigate change for a better and more equal partnership between Pakeha and Maori.

 

Shorts

First Horse

Editor: Cushla Dillon

Aotearoa, 1826. A dying man rides home along the coastline, while a Māori girl weaves a toy boat. She ventures through the forest to launch her boat and is led astray. Sensing danger, she hides and spies on the man and his horse. Fascinated by the horse, she approaches the man. Realising he may have infected her with his disease, he faces a dark dilemma: let her go and risk spreading the illness further or end it there.

Hifi Ulu

Director: Chantelle Burgoyne

Editors: Rāhera Herewini-Mulligan & Janice Herewini-Mulligan

Luka is a boy full of action and adventure, distinguished by his long, uncut hair—a proud symbol of his Niuean heritage. As his tenth birthday approaches, Luka prepares for the Hifi Ulu ceremony, a rite of passage that will mark his transition into young manhood. Navigating this milestone in his own unique way, Luka’s journey is quietly mirrored by his father’s unresolved feelings, having never experienced the ceremony himself. As the day draws near, anticipation builds, leaving everyone to wonder how Luka truly feels about this pivotal moment in his life.

Moearea

Director: Denise Edmonds

Struggling with grief, Tia is plagued by mysterious earthquakes that seem to follow her. These unsettling tremors lead her to an otherworldly geothermal space, where she encounters a haunting spirit. The child-like figure is both terrifying and familiar, compelling Tia to confront her deepest fears. As she learns to communicate with the spirit through the geothermal waters, a profound and unexpected connection is revealed. In this emotionally charged moment, Tia comes to terms with her past, allowing both herself and the spirit to find peace.

Open Looks

Director: Mīria George

Far from their islands in Te Moana-nui-o-Kiva – the South Pacific Ocean – three sisters are raised by their father in a small village in Aotearoa. Rei, Ina and Matilda G share a love of basketball. The sudden death of the eldest sister takes the younger two to Havaiki Nui – the Underworld – where they’re forced to play ball to return home. Opens Looks is a short film told in English and Cook Islands Maori. This is a story of love, grief and basketball.

Payback

Director: Mia Blake

Editor: Ben Chesters

When a welfare department’s insidious prejudice can no longer be tolerated, a group of unlikely heroes band together against a narrow-minded caseworker. Made in collaboration with Toi Whakaari, Mia Blake cleverly reflects the state of the nation in this punchy black comedy.

Turning the Tide: Mātauranga-led Restoration

Director: Magnolia Lowe

Producer: Tui Ruwhiu

Our marine environment is facing enormous pressure from human activities such as excess sediment, nutrients, and plastic pollution, along with impacts at sea from commercial and recreational fishing, aquaculture, extraction of natural resources, introduction of non-indigenous species, and coastal development. These cumulative stressors are being made worse by a changing climate, leading to increased ocean acidification, sea-level rise, and sea-surface temperatures. In Turning The Tide: Mātauranga-led Restoration, Kura Paul-Burke of the University of Waikato is working with doctoral and undergraduate students to research and restore mussel beds in a Mātauranga-led approach.

 

Last updated on 13 February 2025