FEATURE: 25 SEPTEMBER 2007
Larry Parr, Ella Henry and Kath Akuhata-Brown
The September Writer’s Room celebrated the voice of Maori in NZ film and television. Larry Parr (General Manager of Programming MTS) and Kath Akuhata-Brown (Taonga, Irikura ) joined guest MC Ella Henry (host of Ask Your Aunty) for a candid discussion on what it means to write with a Maori voice, how to nurture the voice of Maori in the local screen industry, the contribution Maori storytelling makes to NZ identity and whether there’s a difference between a Maori voice and Maori story.
What is a Maori Voice?
From a Maori perspective, suggested Larry, ‘it’s when you tell a Maori story in a Maori way; from a non-Maori perspective it should be the same thing however often it’s not because people think they’re doing the right thing when they’re not’. He explained in the early days of NZ filmmaking ‘process’ was expected to create a successful Maori voice – ‘tick all the boxes and you’ll have a Maori voice’; but he added he no longer relies on process- ‘it doesn’t matter how you do it – just do it right’. Broken Hearted was used as an example of a story that ticked all the boxes in the making but in Larry’s personal opinion resulted in a film that does not represent the Maori voice, the accents and lines delivered not seeming natural. When Larry raised this specific issue working as a consultant for NZFC they were surprised because they had hired a consultant and followed the right process, causing Larry to wonder whether the consultant was given an environment within which to comfortably raise issues and contribute.
Kath drew attention to the community nature of Maori, explaining that a Maori person represents not just themselves but a whole hapu, iwi; ‘if you don’t get it right you go home and they will tell you – it’s a big responsibility compared to it being just you’ she said. She suggested this sense of responsibility and accountability is a main difference between a Maori and non-Maori voice.
How do we nurture a Maori voice?
Take away the fear of being wrong said Kath. Within the Maori community there are people who can korero in Te Reo, some who can’t, some who have just found out about their heritage- Te Reo is important to Kath personally but she felt it needs to be understood that you don’t have to be fluent to have a Maori voice. One way to aid Te Reo is to introduce production companies policy for using te reo on set she suggested.
Kath added that Maori struggling with identity hinders creativity. Instead Maori writers need to feel empowered and encouraged.
Larry said people must be given freedom to speak. He once made a film with an end scene involving a man walk away from the dead woman he loved, Larry wanted it to rain during a long tracking shot as the man walked. Because the shot would be expensive both editor and two co-producers wanted to drop the rain. Larry insisted and the shot was done with rain. After finishing the film the editor and producers still thought the rain was unnecessary. At a screening 18 months later in the meeting house at Orakei, two old kuia sat either side of Larry; when the scene finished one leaned over to the other and talked about how appropriate the rain was to her sense of aroha – and that alone, said Larry, validated his decision.
Storytelling needs to be nurtured from a young age continuously through education. Too little emphasis is placed on the arts in education. Maori have an oral tradition, storytelling is a skill in particular that should be encouraged agreed the panel.
Larry felt it important to recognize that the Maori voice is already doing well. NZFC have been giving opportunities to the Maori voice which is reflected in short film making with a good representation of Maori shorts in the last few years.
What contribution does the Maori voice make to mainstream New Zealand identity?
A lot of New Zealand films that are successful are ‘closely related to a Maori voice if not purebred’ said Larry. MTS tells a story of the impact of Maori television: 70% of the audience is non-Maori, even in prime time when there is 30-40% Maori language. Not only are they receptive said Larry, but audiences are also asking for more, ‘which is encouraging for us as a country and indicates the Maori voice is very important in our landscape’.
Kath said a look back at past newspapers shows a change in attitudes towards ‘Maori’: ‘gone are the days of headlines “Maori promise to behave at Waitangi’; ‘Maori are threatened with telling off’; instead Gaultier are marching Maori culture down the catwalk, the Maori voice is loud and articulate’. NZ on Air is increasingly supporting Maori through its charters; TVNZ has increased its Maori programming hours to 300.
Is there a difference between a Maori story and a Maori voice?
Kath found herself in trouble for writing an editorial about Whale Rider, saying although it was a beautiful film there wasn’t a single Maori creative involved, there were consultants but no HOD’s were Maori. Therefore she said it is a Maori story because it’s about a Maori ancestor, but it’s not of the Maori voice. It was a story of a girl in a male dominated society, yet in Ngati Porou women are dominant. And it was set in Ngati Porou – therefore Kath questions whether it represented Maori.
Larry also agreed Whale Rider was a beautiful film but that some elements didn’t work. The character of Rawiri Paratene was too one dimensional to be believable, he felt Koro needed to be seen joking or hanging out at the pub, if Rawiri’s character had been written by a Maori writer he would have been different felt Larry. He said the difference between a Maori voice and Maori story ‘is when you get it wrong; Maori voice is when you get it right and Maori story when you get it wrong’.
How do tikanga and wairua shape Maori writing?
‘I love the rituals, the philosophy, I love being Maori – because it offers a spiritual interpretation of the world’ said Kath. Tikanga and wairua offer a different way of telling stories. In most of her projects Kath starts with a karakia or prayer outside the story, because it’s a part of tikanga and blessing of the project. Steven Spielberg starts every film he does with a Jewish blessing, even if quite subtly.
Kath is able to play with the concept of the karakia because she grew up being educated about karakia and its importance; she knows Maori tikanga well enough to be able to play with it and bend the rules. ‘Like playing with structure you have to know the rules well first before you can bend them, and I feel confident enough to bend them’ said Kath.
Larry doesn’t consciously think about tikanga or wairua when creating; ‘it’s an invisible cloak you wear – it’s part of my subconsciouses. It comes naturally to Larry to conceive ideas and implement them with Maori culture inherent in them.
People often have a narrow view of tikanga said Larry, when it can be flexible. He challenged filmmakers to think laterally, citing Michael Bennett’s Kerosene Creek as an example of a project that worked with a local hapu to film a scene that might easily be regarded as impossible. Both Broken Hearted and Once Were Warriors used a façade for filming tangis, but in Kerosene Creek, the scene was shot in the real, with two boys inside two coffins carried onto the marae, despite the local hapu being fairly conservative. Therefore tikanga is flexible but requires understanding of how to work with it, and getting people involved who understand both tikanga and production.
Larry cautioned filmmakers of saying ‘you don’t understand this because it’s a Maori film’ – he said there are good films and bad films and reminded writers that they should not bend rules unless they know conventional structure well. ‘If you want to make a nonlinear Maori-time film then you need to be aware of how to make that come off, you can’t say it’s ‘a Maori film’ in isolation of knowing what else is required to make it a good film’ he advised.
People often say the tangi is a cliché of the Maori story said Kath, but she questioned why anyone should use that as cause for criticism. ‘The tangi is a part of our lives constantly, our structure and stories are informed by emotion, deep and raw emotion, maybe we’re melodramatic – but that’s ok!’. ‘Wairua is informed by our ancestors, so let’s have them in our films, let them walk beside us, that is who we are’. Kath advised Maori to be passionate and political in their story writing, to celebrate Maori culture and have something to say, ‘the Maori voice is strong when Maori are strong in their bones’.
