White Lies

Set in the early 1900s, this feature follows Māori medicine woman Paraiti (played by singer Whirimako Black) who leaves Tūhoe country for Auckland. There, a Māori servant (Rachel House) enlists her to help a wealthy Pākehā woman (Westside’s Antonia Prebble) with a scandalous secret. Award-winning Mexican director Dana Rotberg adapted this tale of culture clash and deception from Witi Ihimaera's novella Medicine Woman. The opening sees Paraiti surviving a horrifying attack, before jumping to scenes shot at Ōpūtao Marae in Te Urewera. Both Black and Prebble won awards for their acting.