default-output-block.skip-main
Regional | Libby Hakaraia

Māoriland film festival to coincide with month-long Matariki light art festival

Source / Matariki ki Kāpiti Facebook

Māoriland Film Festival will this year coincide with a month-long Matariki light art festival, Matariki Ramaroa.

The film festival will run over five days from June 29 to July 3 in Ōtaki and combine with Matariki Ramaroa, also run by Māoriland, creating a "double celebration" for the Kāpiti region.

The two festivals combined will provide a month of arts experiences starting on 24 June - the first Matariki public holiday, organisers said in a statement.

"In 2003 I published the first of three Matariki themed books. At that time I knew very little about the constellation. I was travelling around the country asking people what they knew," says Libby Hakaraia, Māoriland Film Festival Director.

"20 years later we are about to celebrate with a public holiday and by being part of the organising team behind two festivals."

The full programme for the 2022 Māoriland Film Festival - the largest in-person international Indigenous film festival in the world - will be announced on 18 May.

“Pre-covid international filmmakers and screen industry reps were coming in bigger numbers every year to the festival," which is nine years young, says film festival programme director Madeleine Hakaraia.

"When the borders closed our Aotearoa filmmaking community was brought closer together at Māoriland. Now there’ll be an even bigger reason to celebrate as we welcome our friends from overseas back to Ōtaki to share their films."

The Matariki Ramaroa programme will be revealed through May. Last year, was the inaugural Matariki Ramaroa festival.