Sāmoa Language Week – Sāmoan films at MFF2022
Tālofa lava! Mālō le soifua.
Fa’atalofa atu ma le agaga fa’aaloalo i le pa’ia lasilasi. O se vaiaso tāua lenei i so’o se tagata Sāmoa aua o le Vaiaso o le Gagana Sāmoa fa’apea ma le fa’amanatuina o le 60 tausaga o le malo tuto’atasi o Sāmoa.
It’s Sāmoan Language week! Cheehoo!
This year marks 12 years since Sāmoa Language Week has been celebrated in Aotearoa, New Zealand.
This year’s theme is “Fa’aāuāu’ le Folauga i le Va’a’ o Tautai – Continue the Voyage with Competent Wayfinders of the Ocean”. This theme recognises the importance of having the right tools, good leadership skills, relationships and the correct medium (va’a) adaptable to faring the ocean and its elements.
It’s also a significant year for the Sāmoan community as it is the 60th anniversary of Sāmoan Independence. Sāmoa and communities all over Aotearoa are organising activities to commemorate this milestone. Check out the official Vaiaso o le Gagana Sāmoa Facebook page for more information.
Here at Māoriland, we’re celebrating several ‘competent wayfinders’ – talented Sāmoan filmmakers with a film screening at MFF2022.
THE VOYAGER’S LEGACY
Directed by Bailey Poching (Ngāti Whātua, Sāmoa)
Set during the time of the Dawn Raids, The Voyagers Legacy follows the three youngest children of a Samoan family, as they reimagine their bustling Ponsonby home as a magical, whimsical fairytale world of swords and sorcery.
Screening in the ‘He Waiora’ programme: 7:30 pm, Thursday 30 June
Civic Theatre
THE RETRIEVAL
Written by Matilda Poasa (Sāmoa)
Directed by Aree Kapa (Te Aupōuri)
If it’s already yours, it’s not stealing, right?
A young man is faced with the decision of whether to risk the most important thing in his life to fulfil a promise to his elders.
Screening in the ‘He Waiora’ programme: 7:30 pm, Thursday 30 June
Civic Theatre
URCHIN
Directed by Taofia Pelesasa
(Tokelau & Sāmoa)
After a family dispute, Livi opts for a night out with the boys – taking him on a rollercoaster of mischief and mayhem he’d never imagined.
Screening in the ‘Whānau Shorts’ programme: 12 pm, Thursday 30 June, Civic Theatre
RAIDS
Directed by Jade Jackson (Sāmoa)
An intimate look into a police raid on a Pacific Island family. Told through the eyes of a young girl Losa and her father Lupematasila. Story-based on the treatment of Pacific Island families during the New Zealand Dawn Raids of the 70’s.
Screening in the ‘Aotearoa Shorts’ programme: 2 pm, Thursday 30 June, Civic Theatre
SISTA
Directed by Chantelle Burgoyne (Sāmoa)
A betrayal of trust between two sisters on the cusp of adolescence sets off a chain of events that has the potential to shatter their relationship forever.
Screening in the ‘Aotearoa Shorts’ programme: 2 pm, Thursday 30 June
Civic Theatre
E LELE LE TOLOA (The Toloa Bird Soars)
Directed by Selu-Kian Faletoese (Sāmoa)
Tui Meki sits at the centre of this visual talanoa & exploration of identity.
Screening in the ‘Te Hononga’ programme: 10 am, Sunday 3 July, Memorial Hall
PUT SOME RESPECT ON MY NAME
An installation film by Jeremiah Tauamiti Falelatai, Solosolo, Faleasi’u, Pu’apu’a)
“This is for anyone who’s been embarrassed during class role calls, for those who were ashamed because it was a tongue twister. It’s for you broadcasters, the ignorant, the ‘normal’, the can’t be bothered – Put Some Respect On My Name.”
Available to view at Toi Matarau Gallery throughout MFF2022