Hongi, a Maori chieftain’s teenage son, must avenge his father’s murder in order to bring peace and honour to the souls of his loved ones after his tribe is slaughtered through an act of treachery. Vastly outnumbered by a band of villains led by Wirepa, Hongi’s only hope is to pass through the feared and forbidden “Dead Lands” and forge an uneasy alliance with a mysterious warrior, a ruthless fighter who has ruled the area for years.
In a sweeping tale that spans 1000 years and multiple generations – from the distant past to the 19th century, the present day and a strange, dystopian future – this landmark collection traces the collective histories of Indigenous peoples across Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific. Diverse in perspective, content and form, traversing the terrain of grief, love and dispossession, they each bear witness to these cultures’ ongoing struggles against patriarchy, colonialism and racism.
Six Māori Battalion soldiers camped in Italian ruins wait for night to fall. In the silence, the bros-in-arms distract themselves with jokes. A tohu (sign) brings them back to reality, and they gather to say a karakia before returning to the fray. Director Taika Waititi describes the soldiers as young men with "a special bond, strengthened by their character, their culture and each other.
Two young teenagers are forced to take control of their own destiny amid the chaos of a pivotal battle in New Zealand’s first land wars in 1864.
Inspired by actual events, MURU is the story of a local Police Sergeant ‘Taffy’ Tāwharau, who must choose between duty to his badge or his people, when the Government invoke antiterrorism powers to launch an armed raid on Taffy’s remote Urewera community, on a school day. This gripping action drama is not a re-creation, but a response to the 2007 Tūhoe raids. MURU is a Māori concept for 'forgiveness’.
In a Maori settlement, Ngati Toa leader Te Rauparaha composes the famous chant "Ka Mate", also known as the haka, after evading enemy capture by hiding in a kumara pit.
Roimata, a young Maori woman from the East Coast, travels to the city to meet her half-sister Girlie. Introduced to gang members, the scene is set for a major confrontation when Kevin, a young Salvation Army Officer, arrives. Part of the E Tipu Te Rea series.
The spirit of a person killed in a motorway accident runs through forest and beaches on its journey to Te Rerenga Wairua (Cape Rēinga). En route it meets tourist buses and other spirits, before reaching the gnarly pohutukawa and making the leap towards Hawaiki-Nui.
In pre-colonial Aotearoa a young Māori girl witnesses the best and worst of a rapidly changing world when she encounters a dying man and his horse.
The film told the Māori legend of Hinemoa and Tutanekai. It is the first dramatic feature film produced in New Zealand.
Whetū Mārama is the story of Sir Hekenukumai Ngaiwi Puhipi and his significance for Māori in rekindling their wayfinding DNA, reclaiming our place as traditional star voyages on the world map.
A son returns home to help is mother get her affairs in order.
On the day she gets her first menses, Hinekura is initiated into adulthood with ceremony and blessings. She's taken to a wananga where her role within the tribe is revealed to her.
A modern day take on the classic bard tale - with Silver as a movie producer.
A young girl finds comfort in play and slowly reconnects with her distant father after her mother walks out on the family.
After a successful raid and having captured a rival village's leader, a war party must drag their huge canoe or "Taua" through the forest to reach the sea and escape with their trophy but even in a forest of their native land water can be scarce. As the warriors, driven by their insistent chief, press towards home, two boys are tasked to protect the precious water and keep an eye on the prisoner, but need and desperation grows for all as the story drives to a climax.
Set in 1870's Taranaki, Aotearoa. The Land Wars in Aotearoa are over. A Taranaki hapū is planning a feast with Pākehā former soldiers to mark the start of more peaceful times. Not all is what it seems.
In 1979, a group of young Māori and Pasifika activists sought to stop Pākehā students at the University of Auckland performing a parody of haka each capping week. Unfortunately, the consequences for those activists were severe – many were convicted of crimes. Director Katie Wolfe uncovers this largely forgotten event in New Zealand's history with interviews from both in this resonant and thought-provoking documentary.
In this poetic short film, writer/director/songwriter Kararaina Rangihau tells a story of great significance to the Tūhoe people. Unfolding entirely in te reo Māori, the narrative follows a child (played by Te Ratauhina Tumarae) learning the origins to the waiata 'Taku Rākau E', from her great-grandmother (Menu Ripia). Flicking between the present day and 1873, the great-grandmother tells how Mihikitekapua, a blind women of Tūhoe (also played by Ripia), first sang this important waiata. Rangihau was mentored by prominent filmmaker Merata Mita, who produced the film with co-producer Chelsea Winstanley.
Rowan, Adam, Alan and Britt (dungeon master Robert) play D&D. The four players play as their characters from Epic NPC Man, with whatever happens to the characters being deemed as canon in the Epic NPC Man universe.
The Tribe is a New Zealand/British post-apocalyptic fictional TV series primarily aimed at teenagers. It is set in a near-future in which all adults have been wiped out by a deadly virus, leaving the children of the world to fend for themselves. The show's focus is on an unnamed city inhabited by tribes of children and teenagers. It was primarily filmed in and around Wellington, New Zealand. The series was created by Raymond Thompson and Harry Duffin and was developed and produced by the Cloud 9 Screen Entertainment Group in conjunction with the UK's Channel 5. It has aired on over 40 broadcast networks around the world.
The lives and loves of the residents of Ferndale.
After her husband is incarcerated, matriarch Cheryl decides that her career criminal family should go straight and abide by the law.
In a seemingly quiet country town the newest resident, Detective Inspector Mike Shepherd, finds that murder lurks in even the most homely location.
7 Days is a New Zealand comedy gameshow similar in some ways to the British program Mock the Week, hosted by Jeremy Corbett and created by The Down Low Concept. Paul Ego and Dai Henwood usually appear on each episode, along with other comedians, who form teams and answer questions about news stories from the last week.
The New Zealand version of the British “Strictly Come Dancing” show sees celebrities perform choreographed dance routines which are judged by a panel of renowned ballroom experts and voted on by viewers.
Jackson's Wharf was a New Zealand television series created by Gavin Strawhan and Rachel Lang. Set in a fictional coastal town, the series told the story of a sibling rivalry between brothers Frank, the town cop, and Ben Jackson, a big-town lawyer. After inheriting the local pub from his recently deceased father, Ben returns to the small town with his family, with his arrival bringing its fair sheer of drama and conflict to the small township.
Mercy Peak was a New Zealand television series that ran for three seasons on local network TV One, between 2001 and 2004. The series rated well in New Zealand and won multiple awards for its cast. Though an ensemble show, Mercy Peak centres on a doctor who leaves the city to work at a hospital in the small town of Bassett. She works alongside stuffy but caring doctor William Kingsley. The series was produced by Auckland company South Pacific Pictures; a number of those who worked on the show would have a big hand in South Pacific Pictures hit Outrageous Fortune, including co-creator Rachel Lang, directors Mark Beesley and Simon Bennett, and producer John Laing.
New Zealand's best and brightest comedians showcase their current affairs prowess unpacking the hot topics of the week: politics, sports, pop culture news and international affairs to test just who’s been paying attention…
Classic saga of the merchant and his family shipwrecked on a South Seas island. This adaptation of the Johann David Wyss tale was one of the Pax network's initial offerings.
Amy, Britta and Cody are three young women suffering their quarter century crisis: 25 and what have they achieved? They make a vow that in one year they’ll each fulfill their ambition. Their mate-since-childhood Kevin, admires their pluck but, to be honest, since Amy, Britta and Cody are currently Tragically Poor; Tragically Unknown; and Tragically Single, he reckons it’s going to be a bit of an ask.
A recently widowed father, quits his job as a popular 800 word columnist for a top selling Sydney newspaper. Over the internet he buys a house on an impulse in a remote New Zealand seaside town. He then has to break the news to his two teenage kids who just lost their mum, and now face an even more uncertain future. But the colourful and inquisitive locals ensure his dream of a fresh start does not go to plan.
From biscuits to bread, pies to pavlovas, 12 amateur Kiwi bakers have their skills put to the test. Will they rise to the challenge?
New Zealand's capital is a hotbed of supernatural activity... so Officers Minogue and O'Leary, who featured in the vampire documentary What We Do In The Shadows, take to the streets to investigate all manner of paranormal phenomena.
Gloss was a television drama series in New Zealand that screened from 1987-1990. The series was about a fictional publishing empire run by the Redfern family. It was a starting point for many actors who went on to many productions in New Zealand, Australia and around the world including Temuera Morrison, Miranda Harcourt, Peter Elliott, Lisa Chappell, Danielle Cormack and Kevin Smith. Writers for the show included James Griffin, who went on to write Outrageous Fortune, Rosemary McLeod and Ian Mune. The show's title theme song was performed by Beaver Morrison. The show has not been rescreened since its original screening, but selected extracts have been made available for viewing on NZ On Screen.
Eleven-year-old Kevin's passion for history is put to the test when he joins a ragtag group of time-traveling thieves on a high-stakes and hilarious adventure.
The four Johnson brothers have inherited the powers of the Norse gods. Because the gods lived eons ago, however, time has diluted the powers. The unique ability that each brother possesses isn't very strong, and they still have the same desires and faults that mortals do. Their lives include sibling rivalry, trying to get girls, and hanging out; but they also want to be stronger, and so they embark on a quest to fulfill an ancient prophecy in hope of gaining the full strength of their abilities.
An exotic dancer is frozen in 2001 and unfrozen in 2525 by two female warriors fighting against robots that have taken over the world. The three join forces and try to escape from the underground caves to which humanity has been banished.
Fifteen-year-old Wendy lives at Lindentree, a riding school and horse stud, with her parents Charles and Helen. Mad about horses and fiercely devoted to family and friends, Wendy's life primarily revolves around winning a place on the national junior show jumping team, and saving Lindentree from outside forces.
