TearepaKahi
- Director
- Actor
As a teen, Christchurch-raised filmmaker Tearepa Kahi played saxophone and performed theatre. Later he studied history and Māori at Auckland University, and acted in landmark te reo film The Māori Merchant of Venice. After directing several award-winning short films, he made 2012's hit family drama Mt. Zion, then two big screen music documentaries: Poi E: The Story of Our Song, and Herbs - Songs of Freedom. In 2022, Muru — his dramatisation of the 2007 Tūhoe police raids — was chosen to open the NZ International Film Festival. His war documentary Sgt. Haane opened in 2026 to critical acclaim.
Screenography
Awards
2022 Asia Pacific Screen Awards
UNESCO Award: for Muru
2017 Rialto Channel New Zealand Film Awards (The Moas)
Nominated for Best Documentary: Poi E: The Story of Our Song
Nominated for Best Documentary Director: for Poi E: The Story of Our Song
Nominated for Best Documentary Editor (with Francis Glenday): for Poi E: The Story of Our Song
“...Kahi serves it all up with obvious love, a quietly watchful pace and a sunbaked visual style. The result is a smart, finely-observed, heartfelt drama of good humour and decent tunes against an authentic local setting.”