Ramona Papali'i
Samoan Kiwi Ramona Papali'i was one of the first Pasifika women to appear regularly on Kiwi television. In the late 1970s she joined the team on weekly show Pacific Viewpoint — "they wanted someone who had a degree, could speak fluent Samoan and could drive. I had none of these things but I bull******d my way through." Thanks to her gumption and talent, by 1980 she was presenting See Here, a short lunchtime programme aimed at Māori and Pacific Islanders. Papali'i stayed on for the show's entire six year run. In 1994 she presented documentary series Tagata Tangata, about the people of Polynesia.
Lisa Taouma
Lisa Taouma has a laufala bag spilling over with Pasifika screen credits. She has directed on Tagata Pasifika, helmed TV2’s Polyfest and made documentaries on subjects from Samoan tattoo to fa’afafine. She produces pioneering PI youth show Fresh with Mario Gaoa, and in 2014 launched Polynesian online community Coconet. Taouma also wrote short films Brown Sugar and Talk of the Town.