Maori Archives

Tauihu Principal Tui Ruwhiu Joins Ngā Aho Whakaari Board

September 12, 2014January 15, 2017
by tauihumedia

Tauihu principal Tui Ruwhiu has been seconded to the board of Ngā Aho Whakaari, the body representing Maori in screen production.

Tui fills one of two roles vacated by Ngā Aho Whakaari members due to personal reasons.

Ngā Aho Whakaari

Ngā Aho Whakaari was established in 1996, after a series of hui called by Māori film and television practitioners concerned that Māori should be accurately represented in the development of Māori broadcasting by Government.

Many of the originators of Ngā Aho Whakaari were earlier involved with Te Manu Aute, which was an informal collective of Māori filmmakers that actively lobbied for stronger Māori representation in Government decision-making about Māori film making and broadcasting in the 1980’s.

Ngā Aho Whakaari has over recent years been primarily occupied with developments in the television sector and the structure of the board has reflected this. Tui was brought in to help bolster film experience and knowledge as well as take advantage of his marketing and communications background.

Learn more about Ngā Aho Whakaari here.

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News

Further Festival Success for Pūmanawa: The Gift at Wairoa

May 11, 2014January 17, 2017
by tauihumedia

Directed by Poata Eruera and produced by Tauihu Media’s Tui Ruwhiu and Eruera, Pūmanawa: The Gift is finding real traction in the world of indigenous film festivals with its selection for the Wairoa Māori Film Festival 2014.

The Wairoa Film Fest takes place in Nuhaka, with the event scheduled this year 29 May – 2 June 2014.

Wairoa Maori Film Festival

The Wairoa Māori Film Festival was founded in 2005 with the purpose of supporting, recognising and presenting the indigenous storyteller narrative.

Alongside the Māori programme, it screens indigenous film works from all around the world. Indigenous film makers have travelled to the festival from such diverse destinations as Canada, Australia, United States, Mexico, Taiwan, the Philippines and Samoa.

The festival is hosted in Kahungunu Marae, a traditional Māori meeting house in the historic Māori village of Nuhaka. Visitors to the festival are welcomed in a traditional Māori ceremony. Guests stay on the marae, or at the nearby Morere Hot Springs.

Learn more about the Wairoa Māori Film Festival here.

Pūmanawa: The Gift

Pūmanawa: The Gift was directed by Poata Eruera, written by Marie Thompson and Wayne Te Tai, and produced by Tui Ruwhiu and Poata Eruera. It it one of four films developed through Ngā Aho Whakaari’s short film initiative Aho Shorts.

The film tells the story of of a young woman who is serious about a Christian boyfriend. Her mother fears it will threaten a spiritual gift both women have inherited. She takes her daughter back to her own tragic past to show how loneliness, hope and faith can turn love into turmoil. Finally, the daughter must consider the meaning of love and the value of her precious gift.

Aho Shorts

Pūmanawa: The Gift stems from the Aho Shorts strategy to grow film story telling talent in the regions. This initiative was developed by the guild for Māori in film and television – Ngā Aho Whakaari – and funded through them by the New Zealand Film Commission. Over a two year period, writing workshops were held in the Hokianga, Waiariki and Waikaremoana. Pūmanawa:The Gift springboards from the Hokianga and is the first of the Aho Shorts to be completed. The original story comes from Hokianga writers Marie Thompson and Wayne Te Tai.