Hollywood Insider - News Entertainment & Culture

Substance & Meaningful Entertainment

Against Gossip & Scandal

Independent Media Network

Global Stories From Local Perspective

Factual Culture News

Hollywood Insider Taika Waititi, Piki Films, New Zealand, Indigenous Peoples

Photo: Taika Waititi

From the very beginning of his career, New Zealand director and actor Taika Waititi has always celebrated his heritage. His first wildly successful production, Two Cars, One Night, was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film in 2004. The short film focuses on two young boys and a young girl who meet in a parking lot and eventually develop a friendship. The dramatic comedy is inseparably rooted in its setting of Te Kaha, a small community in New Zealand, and heavily features the town pub. This celebration of his cultural origins, and the pride that flows forth from every pore when Waititi discusses his homeland, has followed the aspiring young filmmaker straight into his present-day fame. 

Since his early successes such as Eagle vs Shark and What We Do in the Shadows, Taika Waititi has skyrocketed in popularity. This great rise in notoriety can be attributed, in no small part, to his Marvel Cinematic Universe installment Thor: Ragnarok. Despite existing as one part of a monstrously large franchise, Ragnarok was able to successfully stand out from the pack due to Waititi’s signature wit, creativity and surprisingly honest dramatic moments. With last year’s award-winning comedy/drama Jojo Rabbit, and another Marvel flick on the horizon with Thor: Love and Thunder, it’s clear that Waititi’s future in the entertainment industry is looking exceedingly bright and hopeful. 

Related article: MUST WATCH – Hollywood Insider’s CEO Pritan Ambroase’s Love Letter to Black Lives Matter – VIDEO

Taika Waititi’s Love for Indigenous People

However, despite marching ahead towards tomorrow, Waititi also refuses to forget his roots, and his passion for representing New Zealand through film is still alive and well. Piki Films, the film distribution company which was co-founded by Waititi and has also produced a number of his past films, has committed to representing an underrepresented minority. The distribution company has produced many of New Zealand’s most lucrative international hits, such as The Breaker Uppers and Taika Waititi’s films Hunt For the Wilderpeople and Jojo Rabbit. Now, ScreenDaily reports that a new initiative being put into motion by Piki Films plans to focus on New Zealand’s indigenous peoples. Three exciting new projects, two films and one television series, will be helmed by Māori writers and will focus specifically on themes such as cultural degradation and colonization. 

Related article: Black Mothers Join Politics After Innocent Sons Killed By Police Brutality

Limited Time Offer – FREE Subscription to Hollywood Insider, independent media network for substance and meaningful entertainment that is free of gossip and scandal, factual news on culture, click here

One of these new projects will be a film adaptation of the novel The Imaginary Lives of James Poneke, written by Tina Makereti. The novel focuses on a young Māori orphan who is invited to London to be a part of an exhibit featuring indigenous peoples and their behavior. While initially amazed by the great city, Poneke is soon overcome by a sense of both disgust and isolation. The novel focuses on themes such as imperialism, morality and the loss of individual culture in the modern world. 

Related article: Video: ‘Jojo Rabbit’ – Golden Globes Nominated & Oscar Worthy – Reactions From Stars and Behind The Scenes on with Scarlett Johansson, Taika Waititi, Roman Griffin Davis & Team

Taika Waititi and Piki Film’s Long List of Projects

Another of Piki Films’ new projects is a film adaptation of Down the Rabbit Hole, a stand-up comedy routine by New Zealand comedian Angella Dravid. According to Beat, the routine tells a deeply personal story for Dravid, detailing an event in which she ran away from home to marry an older man and then wound up in prison in the United Kingdom. Dravid explained, “It seems to be that personal stories and very deep stories about yourself seem to be appreciated nowadays, so I felt like this could be the right story to tell at the right time.” The film adaptation will be written by both Dravid and Briar Grace-Smith, a screenwriter who also hails from New Zealand. Grace-Smith was previously involved with Waru, a collection of eight short films each written and directed by female Māori filmmakers. 

Related article: How Will Black Representation on TV Transform Due To #BlackLivesMatter?

Related article: Innocent Kind Elijah McClain “Legally” Murdered by Thug Police Officers

The third project, a television series titled Better The Blood, is perhaps the project most heavily focused on the theme of colonization. The crime thriller series will reportedly focus on a female Māori detective who is tasked with hunting down a serial killer. The serial killer is indigenous, and his crimes are intended as revenge for the atrocities committed against indigenous Māori by their colonizers. The show is being created by Michael Bennet and Jane Holland, an New Zealand writer/director duo whose previous collaboration was the 2018 television film In Dark Places. The film won Bennet, a Māori, an award for Best Director at last year’s New Zealand TV Awards. About Better the Blood, Bennet said, “This story allows us to explore the long-term scars of our brutal colonial history in the context of a visceral and popular genre.”

Related article: Good Cop Stephen Mader Fired For REFUSING to Shoot A Black Person

Subscribe to Hollywood Insider’s YouTube Channel, by clicking here. 

Piki Films’ producer Morgan Waru states that these projects are intended to give Māori creators the limelight, explaining, “We aim to have indigenous voices at the centre of the creative team.” The majority of the projects will be shot at home in New Zealand, and casting is intended to be as authentic and representative of the material as possible. 

Related article: REACTION From STARS on JOJO RABBIT | Scarlett Johansson, Sam Rockwell, Rebel Wilson, Taika Waititi

By Thomas McNulty

Click here to read Hollywood Insider’s CEO Pritan Ambroase’s love letter to Black Lives Matter, in which he tackles more than just police reform, press freedom and more – click here.

An excerpt from the love letter: Hollywood Insider’s CEO/editor-in-chief Pritan Ambroase affirms, “Hollywood Insider fully supports the much-needed Black Lives Matter movement. We are actively, physically and digitally a part of this global movement. We will continue reporting on this major issue of police brutality and legal murders of Black people to hold the system accountable. We will continue reporting on this major issue with kindness and respect to all Black people, as each and every one of them are seen and heard. Just a reminder, that the Black Lives Matter movement is about more than just police brutality and extends into banking, housing, education, medical, infrastructure, etc. We have the space and time for all your stories. We believe in peaceful/non-violent protests and I would like to request the rest of media to focus on 95% of the protests that are peaceful and working effectively with positive changes happening daily. Media has a responsibility to better the world and Hollywood Insider will continue to do so.”

Vote with a conscience – Register to Vote – Your vote saves lives and ends systemic racism

Ways to support Black Lives Matter Movement to end systemic racism

More Interesting Stories From Hollywood Insider

Want GUARANTEED SUCCESS? Remove these ten words from your vocabulary| Transform your life INSTANTLY

Compilation: All James Bond 007 Opening Sequences From 1962 Sean Connery to Daniel Craig

– Do you know the hidden messages in ‘Call Me By Your Name’? Find out behind the scenes facts in the full commentary and In-depth analysis of the cinematic masterpiece

A Tribute To The Academy Awards: All Best Actor/Actress Speeches From The Beginning Of Oscars 1929-2019 | From Rami Malek, Leonardo DiCaprio To Denzel Washington, Halle Berry & Beyond | From Olivia Colman, Meryl Streep To Bette Davis & Beyond

In the 32nd Year Of His Career, Keanu Reeves’ Face Continues To Reign After Launching Movies Earning Over $4.3 Billion In Total – “John Wick”, “Toy Story 4”, “Matrix”, And Many More

Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi, Taika Waititi

Author

  • Thomas McNulty

    Thomas McNulty believes in thorough research and ethical journalism with a keen awareness of Hollywood trends and news. Thomas likes to look at the bigger picture of where the industry is heading with all forms of entertainment, including movies, TV shows, books, video games and live entertainment that are forms of art and should be treated as such. By drawing connections between these various pieces of entertainment, we are able to come closer to understanding society as a whole. Thomas believes in writing for a publication that promotes ethics and morality and that is why he has chosen Hollywood Insider as the right platform to advocate for positive entertainment. 

    View all posts
Website It Up