NZ On Air and Te Māngai Pāho announce over $6.5m in funding for Māori language projects

Irirangi Te Motu | NZ On Air and Te Māngai Pāho have announced the successful applicants for the fifth co-funding round with six bilingual and fluent te reo Māori projects receiving in total up to $6,623,102.

The fund sought high-quality, Scripted and Non-fiction content that is original and uses a range of levels of te reo Māori to engage and inform audiences across a wide range of platforms.

End of the Valley is a fluent new drama series for Whakaata Māori, that navigates land claim negotiations and the struggle between loyalty and survival. The series will follow protagonist, Kaea Williams, as he unravels the secrets of Ngāti Kiokio and the death of a father he never knew.

Returning to TVNZ 1, The Casketeers: Life and Death Around the World will follow Kaiora and Francis Tipene as they discover the deeply held traditions and rituals of death and dying from different cultures around the world.

Stepping into the world-beating MMA gym CKB, Relentless is an all-access docuseries for TVNZ+ that follows 10 hopefuls as they compete for a place on the City Kickboxing team. We follow the 12 week ‘fight camp’ journey through the eyes of the hopefuls, as they learn that CKB is greater than the sum of its parts; a fearless institution that makes amazing fighters, and even better humans.

The Drawing Board returns for a second season on Whakaata Māori, showcasing Māori-led and Māori-designed architectural projects across the motu – fronted by Derek Kawiti (Ngāti Hine, Ngāpuhi, Tūhoe, Ngāti Porou), Professor of Architecture at Victoria University.

A two-part documentary special for Whakaata Māori, Motuhaketanga, will follow three wāhine Māori as they prepare to leave prison, the challenges they face and their pathway to creating their own motuhaketanga or self-determination.

And finally, the Waiapu river is the major artery and spiritual heart of the Ngāti Porou landscape. For distribution on online platforms, Why Apu? will look into the environmental disasters currently facing Te Tairāwhiti and the fight for the future of the environment and for future generations .

“NZ On Air is thrilled that our partnership with Te Māngai Pāho continues to produce such innovative bilingual content for audiences. These six projects brilliantly showcase a range of voices and perspectives while also normalising the use of te reo Māori across media platforms,” said Irirangi Te Motu Chief Executive Cameron Harland.

“Te Māngai Pāho is proud of this partnership with Irirangi Te Motu and the opportunities it provides to tell Māori stories to a wide audience. The six projects funded in this co-fund round strongly convey a Māori worldview and will champion te reo Māori throughout,” says Kaihautū o Te Māngai Pāho, Larry Parr.

Funding details | Ngā kōiriiri tukunga pūtea

The total funding is split approx. 50/50 between Te Māngai Pāho and NZ On Air.

End of the Valley, 6 x 26 mins, Miro Productions Ltd for Whakaata Māori, up to $2,359,987.

The Casketeers: Life and Death Around the World, 6 x 44 mins, Great Southern Television Ltd for TVNZ 1, up to $1,537,537.

Relentless, 9 x 22 mins, Fire Fire Ltd for TVNZ+, up to $1,000,668.

The Drawing Board S2, 8 x 25 mins, Faultline Films Ltd for Whakaata Māori, up to $669,521.

Motuhaketanga , 2 x 52 mins, Black Iris Ltd for Whakaata Māori, up to $539,660.

Why Apu?, 6 x 20 mins, Te Amokura Productions Ltd for online platforms, up to $515,729.