Ngā Puna - The Visitation

The Visitation is a supernatural mystery-drama directed by Ian Mune as part of Don Selwyn's Ngā Puna anthology series. The story follows Joseph (Turei Reedy), a quiet, misunderstood Māori man with a love for books, an inquisitive heart and keenly observant eyes. After his father disappears, Joseph runs his overbearing European mother's second-hand bookshop — 'Second Sight' — and looks out for his pregnant friend, Moana. As unsettling visitations begin, the boundary between the living and the dead blurs. A restless spirit driven by revenge and utu draws Joseph into the depths of Māori spirituality and worlds beyond the physical.

Ah, reincarnation! You know I don’t like listening to such stuff. Spirits, spells, such talk makes me sick. I think I’m back listening to your father … All that Māori spirit stuff, tapu this and Hawaiki that. What did it all add up to, huh? Nothing from nothing. That’s what. Superstitious nothing.

– Joseph’s mother (Joy Watson) dismisses Māori spirituality, revealing her racism and hostility

Key Cast & Crew

Ian Mune

Director

Ross Jennings

Producer

Liebchen Tamahori

Writer

Sela Brown

As: Moana Natana

Joseph Kairau

As: Young Joseph, Tukawhena

Rena Owen

As: Shirley Natana