View the full Māoriland Film Festival programme and film details online at mff.maorilandfilm.co.nz

---

Please note screenings are unrated.

The Mountain
7:30 PM, Thu  21 Mar 
Nga Purapura 
2024 | 89 mins | Rachel House | Taranaki whanui | English

Sam, a fearless young girl raised outside of her Māori culture, is determined to fulfil her mission of connecting with her mountain in the hope they can heal her from the cancer she battles. Along the way she meets some misfits and new kids in town – Mallory, hoping to find friends, any kind of friends - and Bronco who claims to be a runaway from his dad who is too busy to notice him. As they make their way through the difficult “off the beaten track” route, they learn the true spirit of adventure and the magic of friendship.

This screening is preceded with the world premiere of Taonga Puoro video, Raukatauri

Hineraukatauri 
2023 | 4 mins | Jonathan Hislop | Aotearoa | English & Māori

'Raukatauri' is a unique retelling of purakau, combining Taonga Puoro performance and live sand art (Toi Onepu) with experimental digital art.


Eallogierdu - The Tundra Within Me
8:30 PM, Thu  21 Mar 
Civic Theatre 
2023 | 93 mins | Sara Margrethe Oskal | Sápmi in Northern Norway | Norwegian with English subtitles

After living for many years in Oslo, Lena moves back to Sápmi in Northern Norway with her young son to explore Sami gender in an art project. While researching in the wintry tundra, she falls in love with reindeer herder Máhtte - whose mother, the head of the family, disapproves of the relationship. As decisions from the past come to haunt her, Lena struggles to find out whether her and Máhtte’s lifestyles can ever be compatible.

 

Inky Pinky Ponky
2:30 PM, Fri  22 Mar 
Civic Theatre 
2023 | 61 mins | Damon Fepuleai, Ramon TeWake | Aotearoa | Tongan & English with English subtitles

When a young fakaleiti (3rd Spirit) becomes entangled with the Rugby Captain at St Valentine’s High School, she must navigate her way through a world of intolerance to find happiness - in an unexpected place. The melting pot becomes a pressure cooker when rugby players, Island mums, gender fluidity and teenage micro-aggressions all converge in this highly bent high school romance.

Hey Viktor! (R13)
8:30 PM, Fri  22 Mar 
Nga Purapura 
2023 | 102 mins | Cody Lightning | Samson Cree Nation | English

Twenty years removed from childhood fame as Little Viktor in 1998’s Smoke Signals, Cody Lightning has been forced to move home to his reserve in northern Alberta. He still believes himself to be famous— even though the only parts he gets these days are porn & fracking commercials. But when Cody learns his wife and kids are leaving him for a younger, more successful actor, he decides it’s time to quit fucking around and make his masterpiece— writing, directing, & starring in SMOKE SIGNALS 2: STILL SMOKING. A documentary crew follows Cody on his journey around the Indigenous world— re-uniting the original cast, borrowing money from arms dealers, & realizing his vision... just in time to realize his vision was shit.
This screening is recommended for mature audiences
 

Warrior Strong
3:00 PM, Sat  23 Mar 
Nga Purapura 
2023 | 98 mins | Shane Belcourt | Metis | English

When basketballer, Bilal Irving, is suspended from the pros, he has one play left to repair his image and save his career – returning home to coach his former high school team. Unfortunately, his old coach, Avery Schmidt, still holds the job and isn’t keen on sharing it.

Reluctantly forced to “co-coach”, the two coaches must overcome their fractious past relationship and learn to work together to pull the bottom-rated WARRIORS into the championship – and maybe learning something about themselves along the way.
 

The New Boy
7:15 PM, Sat  23 Mar 
Civic Theatre 
2023 | 116 mins | Warwick Thornton | Kaytetye | English
Warwick Thornton's latest drama stars Academy Award winner Cate Blanchett as a renegade nun.

Set in 1940s Australia, the film depicts the mesmeric story of a nine-year-old Aboriginal orphan boy who arrives in the dead of night at a remote monastery run by Sister Eileen (Blanchett). The new boy’s presence disturbs the delicately balanced world in this story of spiritual struggle and the cost of survival.
This screening is recommended for mature audiences
 

The Moogai
8:45 pm, Sat 23 Mar
The Civic Theatre
2024 | 86 mins | Jon Bell | Wiradjuri, Bundjalung

A young Aboriginal couple bring home their second baby. What should be a joyous time takes a sinister turn as the mother starts seeing a malevolent spirit she is convinced is trying to take her baby. 

Adapted from the award-winning short film of the same title (MFF2022), Jon Bell’s debut feature film melds Indigenous lore with allusions to Australia’s stolen generations in a thematically rich supernatural tale.
 

View the full festival programme and film details online at mff.maorilandfilm.co.nz

---

---

To return to the main page please click HERE