A group of Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Te Kōtuku students have created a Māori animation story and they’re set to showcase their work at a festival in France.
Student Tawhirimatea Ashby says they’re all excited to take Māori narratives to the world stage.
“We’re really excited for our group to fly overseas,” he told TVNZ1's Te Karere.
Mana is the name of the piece the students will be presenting at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival and Market in Annecy, France.
Their animation focuses on the narrative of the big fight between Tāne and Whiro and it is totally in te reo Māori.
This is also a first for a kura kaupapa Māori to present at this festival and Ashby says expanding their potential in animation is a key focus.
This project has been developed over the past two years and they also started using old school animation practices.
Teacher Stan Fong says he wants to expose the students to what's beyond our shores - “exchange of ideas, exchange of creativity, seeing what people are doing in Europe, in Asia and then at the same time impelling what we're doing here”.
The group is set to fly overseas on Thursday. Moving forward, the long-term goal is to showcase the animations in cinemas across New Zealand.
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