Marae - Aurere (Merata Mita)

Television (Excerpts) – 2010

Merata Mita was a pioneering filmmaker, who helped pave the way for wahine Māori, and indigenous storytelling both in Aotearoa and abroad. In this Marae, episode, three of her friends and colleagues pay tribute, just a week after her June 2010 passing. Presenter Shane Taurima is joined in the studio by producer Hineani Melbourne, who recently attended Mita's tangi in Maketu. He also talks via video to Mt. Zion director Tearepa Kahi (chairman of Māori screen organisation Ngā Aho Whakaari) and Bird Runningwater (Sundance Institute director), who speak of Mita's role as a cherished mentor.

We have the stories to tell, brilliant stories to tell that have never appeared on the screen and never will — unless we're making the films and telling the stories.
– Filmmaker Merata Mita in an archival clip featured early in this report