New Zealand

The Bastion Point occupation was one of the most important protests in the struggle for Māori land rights in New Zealand. The protest began in 1977 when the government proposed to subdivide Māori land in the Bastion Point region of Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city. The Ngāti Whātua tribe resisted these plans and occupied the site for 506 days. This film concentrates on day 507, when the protesters were forcibly evicted by a force of 800 military and police. No other film crew was permitted in the occupied area.

Bastion Point – Day 507 courtesy of the Merata Mita Estate, Leon Narbey, Gerd Pohlmann, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei and the Hawke whanau From material preserved and made available by Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

10/5  13:00

The sudden death of pioneering Māori filmmaker Merata Mita in 2010, led her son on a journey to uncover a story of mother’s love that changed the landscape of indigenous films forever. Indeed, she opened doors for indigenous voices we celebrate today; Warwick Thornton, Taika Waititi, Sterlin Harjo and Zoe Hopkins to name a few.

Merata was the first Māori woman to write and direct a narrative feature in 1988 (Mauri). Her political films denounced abuses Māori people were suffering from in the 80’s and often divided the country. She became an international hero but was considered a domestic nuisance.

She worked across the globe for the BBC, National Geographic and directed films in Hollywood, interviewed Robert Mugabe and followed Louis Farakhan; she was fearless.

10/4  20:00

“This is a story of the Lak people. It‘s also a story of how I came to know the people of the Lak region, how I learnt their traditions, became a community member, and how my story became forever woven into their own… I was also to become enmeshed in events that resulted in bloodshed, death and threatened the existence of the entire community. What’s more, I was held responsible…”

In 2001 Paul Wolffram, a cultural researcher, travelled to one of the most isolated and unique corners of the earth. He eventually spent over two years living and working among the Lak people in the rainforest of Papua New Guinea. As his relationships with the people grew he began to glimpse a hidden reality, a dark and menacing history that loomed over his host community.