Whetū Mārama: Bright Star: Hek Busby reignites the art of Māori voyaging.
Graeme Tuckett Stuff/ Waikato Times 5 out of 5 Stars “A film that will be wondered over for years”.
Portrait on Sir Hekenukumai Busby, an honoured icon who went above and beyond to help reclaim the lost art of traditional Māori voyaging.
The directors of Whetu Marama will be at this session to introduce the film and answer questions afterwards.
From Doc Edge and NZIFF festivals.
Screening in Raglan as part of Matariki 2022 celebrations. Sponsored by Matariki ki Waikato
WHETU MARAMA | BRIGHT STAR | Documentary Exempt | 90 mins NZ
Saturday 2nd July 5.00pm and 8.00pm
Sunday 17th July 4.30pm Entry by koha. THIS SESSION IS FULLY BOOKED – SEE BELOW FOR EXTRA SESSIONS
By demand, there will be two extra sessions on 23rd July at 5pm and at 8pm.
Normal ticket prices of $15 Adults, $12 Concession and $8 Children will apply.
Raglan Movies at the Old School, 5 Stewart St, Raglan 3225.
Book online: raglanmovies.nz, call into the Old School office Mon-Fri 10am to 2pm. (Office closed public holidays)
Door sales from 30 mins before session times.
Licensed bar & homemade snacks on sale.
Movie screenings are running under the Orange setting with face masks recommended.
For Māori, the canoe underpins our culture. We once built waka/canoes from giant trees and sailed the vast Pacific by the stars. These arts were lost to us for 600 years. Then the stars re-aligned and three men from far flung islands revived our place as the greatest navigators on the planet, a Hawaiian, a Micronesian and Hek Busby, “The Chief” from Aotearoa/New Zealand.
Whetū Mārama – Bright Star is the story of Sir Hekenukumai Ngaiwi Puhipi, aka Hek Busby, and his significance for Māori in rekindling their wayfinding DNA and for all New Zealanders in reclaiming our place as traditional star voyages on the world map. “Toby Mills and Aileen O’Sullivan’s stirring documentary Whetū Mārama – Bright Star depicts this extraordinary journey: Sir Hek’s willingness as a student, bravery as a modern-pioneer waka builder and navigator, and desire to pass on this regathered knowledge to future generations. Story strands are skillfully interwoven via recent interviews, waka hourua voyaging, archival footage and creative dramatic reconstructions.
Whetū Mārama conveys the wairua of Sir Hek, the impassioned individual, and of a committed group of pan-Pacific navigators and their supportive whānau, who together strove to restore an all but lost art of our voyaging Pacific heritage, thereby strengthening our future. Ka mua, ka muri (Walking backwards into the future) indeed!” — Jacob Powell Whetū Mārama – Bright Star is the story of a culture that understands an inner compass. Hek’s voyaging has reconnected his crews with their inbuilt GPS systems and they in turn are teaching and inspiring the next generation, building a bridge back into our past to take us forward into the future.
Director: Aideen O’Sullivan, Toby Mills
Cast: Hekenukumai Busby
Documentary Exempt | 90 mins NZ