The Wairoa Māori Film Festival is New Zealand's premiere

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

and indigenous film festival. The festival is held annually in the small coastal town of

Nūhaka Nūhaka is a small settlement in the northern Hawke's Bay Region of New Zealand's eastern North Island, lying on State Highway 2 between Wairoa and Gisborne. The road to Māhia Peninsula turns off the highway at Nūhaka. Nūhaka has one gen ...

Hawke's Bay Hawke's Bay () is a region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region is named for Hawke Bay, which was named in honour of Edward Hawke. The region's main centres are the cities of Napier and Hastings, while the more rural ...

, during the

Matariki In Māori culture, Matariki is the Pleiades star cluster and a celebration of its first rising in late June or early July. The rising marks the beginning of the new year in the Māori lunar calendar. Historically, Matariki was usually celebr ...

celebration period. The festival first occurred in 2005 and is now an annual event. In 2008, the festival travelled to other centres in New Zealand, including Auckland and Wellington, and now travels each year, including to international locations. The Wairoa Māori Film Festival is held at the historic Kahungunu Marae in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, and is supported by the

New Zealand Film Commission The New Zealand Film Commission (NZFC; ) is a New Zealand government agency formed to assist with creating and promoting New Zealand films. It was established under the New Zealand Film Commission Act 1978 (as amended in 1981, 1985, 1988, 1994 a ...

Festival Awards

Each year the festival presents a range of awards for best Māori and indigenous films. Short films are judged by the attending audience, with other awards decided by a panel of guest judges. ;2005 *Short Film Drama (Aotearoa) Award: '' Two Cars, One Night'' (director,

Taika Waititi Taika David Cohen (born 16 August 1975), known professionally as Taika Waititi ( ), is a New Zealand filmmaker, actor, and comedian. Known for quirky comedy films and expanding his career as a voice actor and producer on numerous projects, he ...

) *International Indigenous Entry Award: '' Te Toa Āniwaniwa'' (director and producer, Robert Pouwhare) *Short Documentary (Aotearoa) Award: '' Buy Culturalism'' (director

Mark Sweeney Mark Patrick Sweeney (born October 26, 1969) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) first baseman who played for several teams from 1995 to 2008. He is best known for his skill as a pinch hitter, where he ranks second in career pinch ...

) *Feature Documentary (Aotearoa) Award: '' Tuhoe: A History of Resistance'' (director, Robert Pouwhare) *Feature Drama (Aotearoa) Award: ''

Whale Rider ''Whale Rider'' is a 2002 New Zealand drama film written and directed by Niki Caro. Based on the 1987 novel '' The Whale Rider'' by Witi Ihimaera, the film stars Keisha Castle-Hughes as Kahu Paikea Apirana, a twelve-year-old Māori girl whos ...

'' (director,

Niki Caro Nikola Jean Caro (born 20 September 1966) is a New Zealand film, television, and music video director and screenwriter. Her 2002 film ''Whale Rider'' was critically praised and won a number of awards at international film festivals. She directe ...

) *Festival Prize: '' Pear Ta Ma'On Maf / The Land Has Eyes'', Feature Drama, (director, Vilsoni Hereniko, Rotuma, Fiji) ;2006 *Short Film Drama (Aotearoa) Award: '' The Speaker'' (director,

Tearepa Kahi Tearepa Kahi (born 16 March 1978), also known as Te Arepa Kahi, is a New Zealand film director and former actor of Ngāti Paoa and Waikato Tainui descent. Kahi is best known for the 2013 drama '' Mt. Zion'' starring Stan Walker, and the Pātea M ...

) *International Indigenous Entry Award: '' The Gathering Return of the Whale Dreamers'' (director, Kim Kindersley) *Short Documentary (Aotearoa) Award: '' So Far, Yet So Close'' (director, Sophie Zhang) *Feature Documentary (Aotearoa) Award: '' Squeegee Bandit'' (director, Sandor Lau) *Best Te Reo Maori Entry: '' Nga Kaitiaki O Te Mauri'' (director,

Phil England Phil may refer to: * Phil (given name), a shortened version of masculine and feminine names * Phill, a given name also spelled "Phil" * Phil, Kentucky, United States * ''Phil'' (film), a 2019 film * -phil-, a lexical fragment, used as a root ter ...

) *Festival Prize: '' The Waimate Conspiracy'' (director, Stefen Lewis) ;2009 *Short Film Drama (Aotearoa) Audience Award: '' Warbrick'' (directors, Pere Durie and Meihana Durie) *International Indigenous Entry Award: '' Tnorala Baby Falling'' (director,

Warwick Thornton Warwick Thornton is an Australian film director, screenwriter, and cinematographer. His debut feature film '' Samson and Delilah'' won the Caméra d'Or at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival and the award for Best Film at the Asia Pacific Screen Awar ...

) *Feature Drama/Documentary (Aotearoa) Award: '' Taking the Waewae Express'' (directors, Andrea Bosshard and Shane Loader) *Festival Prize: '' Rain of the Children'' (director, Vincent Ward)

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wairoa Maori Film Festival Film festivals in New Zealand Tourist attractions in Hawke's Bay Indigenous film festivals Māori festivals Māori mass media Wairoa District