Pākehā

Eddie Page Productions & Mana Hira Davis have joined forces to bring you the short film, Pākehā. Pākehā is a short story inspired by the true life events of writer/director Mana Hira Davis. The creation of this project will bring together the local Bay of Plenty creative community, rangatahi and mentors.

Logline

A young pākehā mother's determination to learn Te Reo Māori to connect her son with his whakapapa, exposes her struggles, resilience and courage to confront her personal demons.

The World

Pākehā is a film set in 1982, New Zealand. A time when the country was undergoing significant cultural shifts. The world is richly textured with the sights and sounds of this era, blending the traditional Māori culture with the pervasive influence of Western society. The tone is both sombre and hopeful, capturing the raw realities of one woman's domestic life while celebrating her strength and resilience to honour her son's cultural identity.

 

The film explores themes of cultural reconciliation, mental health, and the power of aroha in overcoming obstacles.

Why are we telling this story? From the Director

Pākehā is about healing the hurt. It's about letting go the idea of race and celebrating ourselves as human beings, uniting us all as children of Papatuanuku and Ranginui.

Based on true events, the inspiration for this story struck me at the Rotorua Film Festival in 2023, while watching indigenous short films from Australia and Aotearoa. The powerful stories about the effects of colonisation resonated deeply with me.

The story of my own upbringing kept coming to mind, moving me so much that I had to leave the main theatre, ducked into the foyer and began writing about my mother's journey living with her husband's mental illness and her experience with learning Te Reo Māori as a Pākehā, in the early 1980's.

The characters are based on the images and feelings I had as a young boy.

"My hope with this film is to show the beauty and resurgence of Te Reo Māori in the 1980's. The time was new, exciting and yet scary for many to learn or relearn their native language. I want this film to remind us that love connects us to everything."

 

Lastly, Pākehā is honouring my mother for all she has done for me, the initial title for this short film was called... Thank you mum x