Once Were Warriors

Once Were Warriors opened the eyes of cinemagoers around the globe to an unexamined aspect of modern New Zealand life. Director Lee Tamahori's hard-hitting depiction of domestic and gang violence amongst an urban Māori whānau was adapted from the best-selling Alan Duff novel. The film provided career-defining roles for Temuera Morrison and Rena Owen as Jake the Muss and Beth Heke. It remains New Zealand's most watched local release in terms of the number of bums on seats. Among a trio of background pieces on the film, Riwia Brown describes adapting Alan Duff's book for the screen.