Māoriland Mini Film Festival

Māoriland Mini Film Festival

As part of Asia TOPA, Bunjil Place is proud to partner with the Māoriland Film Festival to present an evening of live performance and indigenous films from across the Southern Hemisphere. Māoriland is celebrated for its manaakitanga and community spirit. This is a Pasifika outdoor cinematic experience not to be missed.

Saturday 1 March, 2025 - Feature film, Uproar
7.00 pm - 10.00 pm 

Sunday 2 March, 2025 - Short Film Program
3.00 pm - 5.10 pm

UPROAR

7.00 pm: Gates open & pre-film live performance
8.00 pm: Feature film - Uproar
9.50 pm: Event ends

17-year-old Josh (Julian Dennison) is forced off the fence he has actively sat on his entire life, to find his voice – and to stand up for himself, his whanau (family) and his future. 

UPROAR is a story about connection and finding your place in the world. It is the story of 17-year-old Josh Waaka (played by Julian Dennison). Set in Dunedin in 1981, a rugby-obsessed country is divided over the arrival of the South African Springboks team, sparking nationwide protests. Under pressure from home and school to conform, Josh, who has never felt like he fits in anywhere, is inspired by the protests to find his own voice. A sequence of events sees Josh embrace his community and follow his heart to his Māori heritage, which brings him on a journey towards healing.

This film is classifies M, recommended for mature audiences aged 15+. 

SHORT FILM PROGRAM

3.00 pm: Gates open & pre-film live performance
4.00 pm: Māoriland Short Film program
5.10 pm: Event ends 

Ta’i
Mii Taokia, 2023, 6 minutes 

Ta’i lives in a world that is both beautiful and dangerous. The Pacific islands that were once teeming with life are now being destroyed by the island eaters. These machines are massive, towering beasts that consume everything in their path, leaving nothing but barren wasteland in their wake. The people who once lived on these islands are now scattered, living in small communities and constantly on the move to avoid the island eaters. 

Tuia Nga Here
Heriata Erana Rurehe, 2023, 12 minutes,  

16-year-old Hiwa returns to her rural home from boarding school to discover her grandfather is terminally ill and unable to continue his life work of land conservation. 
Coming to terms with the shifting dynamic in her family Hiwa notes that younger brother Potiki has inherited their grandfather’s affinity for the environment. 
When Potiki goes missing while in search of a cure for their grandfather, they both realize their role as the next generation of guardians for the land and their family. 

Telesia 2 the world
Telesia Ruth Solomon Tanoai, 2023, 20 minutes

Telesia has been learning Chinese to advocate for her people on climate change issues faced in the Pacific. Follow her journey to China to represent NZ at the 2023 International Chinese Bridge Speech Competition amongst 110 students from around the world. 

Marahoro
Sofía Rodríguez Pizero, 2023, 16 minutes

"Marahoro” is the amusing and heartwarming coming of age story of 15-year-old Marahoro’s typical summer routine in his island home, Rapa Nui. Having a rough time balancing his father’s wishes for him to become a rapa nui folk artist and his own calling from the voices of the sea, the spirited young boy finds the strength in an ancient rapa nui holler to challenge his father’s harshness, showing him that his son can find his own place in the world and honor his culture in his own way, surfing the perfect ocean waves of Rapa Nui. 

Mahika Kai
Kieran Ampetyane Satour, 2023, 10 minutes

Against the astonishing terrain of Wanaka — embracing wild vast lakes, glaciers and mountains and dotted with widely trodden resorts — the film follows a family of Kai Tahu cultural conservators and knowledge-holders on their mission to rehabilitate a degenerating landscape by regenerating their traditional cultural practices of mahika kai (food gathering places). 

In a story of active tautiakitaka (guardianship), Paulette Tamati Elliffe, Komene Cassidy, and their tamariki. Tumai Cassidy draws on the wisdom of their ancestors to restore both traditional Maori food sources like tuna (eel) or the Weka (bird) and the language intrinsic to these practices. In this journey, they overcome the destructive rupture of nature from culture, past from present, and language from the landscape that has accelerated the parallel disconnection from and decline of their whenua (land). These regenerative practices are extensions of a deep connection to and understanding of place. In caring for Country, we strengthen both the landscapes and ourselves: healthy water systems, nutrient-rich soil, thriving animals and plants all contribute to the health and well-being of our communities — creating a resilient, thriving future for all. 

Kutcha's Koorioke – Birdz
John Harvey, 2022, 6 minutes

Kutcha takes Birdz, and Uncle Jack to meet up with Fred Leone at the Corroboree Tree for a powerhouse performance of ARIA award winning song 'Bagi-la-m Bargan’, a song from a young warrior’s perspective as he prepares to defend his country.  

“Patiently waiting for someone I ain’t never seen before They say he’s a captain of men, but he don't believe in our lore. From the land of the white skin He’s self-righteous, a murder without license With the spear, I’m the nicest Thinkin’ that I might just wait ‘til night hits” 

Performers

Breanne Peters
Saturday 1 March, 7.00pm – 8.00pm
Breanne Peters is a gifted and talented musician/singer-songwriter based in Tooradin. She began classical piano and classical guitar at age 3, by age 7 she was learning acoustic and electric guitar, bass guitar, drums, and voice and at age 8 her love and passion for music lead her to public performances and song writing. Breanne graduated at the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School (VCASS) in 2021 where she studied Classical and Jazz guitar. She plays a variety of genres but her passion is for her Māori culture and she incorporates this in her song writing. Many of her songs are in Te Reo Māori, the indigenous language of New Zealand.