The MāoriLand Film Festival celebrated its 13th year this week, with hundreds of indigenous filmmakers from across the world congregating in Ōtaki. As the festival enters its teenage years, the focus on rangatahi (youth) is key, and with the Ngā Pakiaka programme, Māoriland Film Festival Director Madeleine Hakaraia de Young says the future of Māori filmmaking is secure.

“When we first started the festival it started with my aunties and uncles and myself as the teina in the whānau and they spent the first 10 years of the festival training me up so that I could take over so the moment that morning I woke up and i was like oh no who is my teina and so we’re bringing them all through so we have that succession strategy,” Hakaraia de Young says.

“We are here because we believe in indigenous story-telling and being able to bring that to our community here in Ōtaki,” she says. “Our indigenous film makers bring new voices forward, they bring a perspective and when there is so much of the same, same, it’s a space to be real, to connect and be inspired.”

With rangatahi now poised to enter the industry, she believes Māoriland has reached a critical moment. “we have rangatahi ready to come into the industry so i feel like we’re at this tipping point where we could make some really incredible things.”

Ko te kaupapa o Ngā Pakiaka, He kuaha ki te ao Kiriata mō ngā rangatahi

Ko tēnei ahurei tētahi tatau e kōrerohia ana e Oriwa Hakaraia, e āhei ai te rangatahi te kuhu, e rongo ai ia i ngā whēako o tēnei ao, ngā whēako i kitea e Oriwa i a ia e noho ana ki ngā rekereke o tōna whāea. Kua puawai a Oriwa i te kōhanga o MāoriLand, ā, kua puta te ihu ki te ao.

E kī ana a Oriwa Hakaraia mō te hiranga o te uru ki ngā mahi katoa o te hanga kiriata:

“He mea nui ki ahau ki te uru atu ki ngā momo department rerekē o te ao kiriata kia whai whēako hōu ahau kia kite ahau i te pikitia nui he aha ngā momo mahi, he aha ngā momo ringa, te heke o te werawera e ū ai ki roto i te hanga o tētahi kiriata.”

I a ia e mātaki ana i tana whaea e mahi ana, ka ara ake tōna hiahia ki te tautoko i te kaupapa:

“I a au e mātaki ana i a ia e mahi ana i aua mahi he tino hiahia nō roto i ahau ki te tautoko i a ia, otirā ki te tautoko i tōku hapori me te kaupapa nei.”

E mōhio ana ia he maha ngā rangatahi e rapu ana i tētahi ara ki te ao kiriata, ā, ko Ngā Pakiaka tētahi ara hei whai mā rātou.