With Mauri (1988), Merata Mita became the first Māori woman to direct a dramatic feature alone. Along with Ngāti the previous year, Mauri played a key role in the rise of Māori cinema.
The crew of 33 Māori and 20 Pākehā included interns from Hawkes Bay wānanga — plus composer Hirini Melbourne, artist Ralph Hotere as production designer, and actors Eva Rickard and Anzac Wallace (star of Utu).
Mauri (meaning life force) is set among the colourful characters of a once thriving settlement upon whom the encroachment by Europeans spells disaster. Now isolated by lack of numbers, time and distance, the remaining survivors form a tight-knit community which outsiders find impenetrable.
Rewi Rapana returns to Te Mata desperately hiding a secret from his past and his arrival rekindles old tensions as well as renewing family ties.
