Whakaata Māori has been nominated for 17 awards across 11 categories in this year’s prestigious New Zealand Television Awards.
Whakaata Māori tāhuhu rangapū Shane Taurima says he’s proud of those who have come together, even in trying times, to be a part of a community focused on strengthening Māori storytelling in te reo Māori and English and ensuring more Māori content is accessible to audiences.
“Whakaata Māori enables Māori to tell their stories in te reo Māori and in an authentically Māori way. We contribute to the protection and promotion of te reo me ngā tikanga Māori alongside fellow kaupapa Māori content creators and being recognised for our efforts in revitalisation of te reo Māori is an honour,” Taurima says.
“As a media platform, we do our best to create content that informs, educates, entertains viewers, and enriches New Zealand’s society, culture, and heritage but it is our independent Māori producers and production houses that are the real winners here.”
The New Zealand Television Awards recognises excellence in television and honours the special skills and unique talents of the companies and individuals who create, produce, and perform in television programmes in New Zealand.
“Our team works hard to ensure te reo Māori content is delivered to everyone, everywhere. Our annual Ngā Tohu Matariki o Te Tau awards for example launched the journey towards the first formal acknowledgement of Matariki nationwide," Whakaata Māori Tāhuhu Kaupapa Maramena Roderick says.
'Stories that deserve to be told'
"This year, in a first for Whakaata Māori, the awards were hosted outside Auckland and broadcast live from the Museum of New Zealand, Te Papa Tongarewa, in Wellington,” she says.
The annual Matariki awards, Ngā Tohu Matariki o te Tau 2022 has been nominated for the Te Māngai Pāho best reo Māori programme and best live event coverage.
Acclaimed current affairs show Te Ao with Moana has been nominated for Best current affairs programme; hosted by Māori broadcaster, writer, musician and documentary maker, Moana Maniapoto, and is produced by her son, award-winning reporter, Hikurangi Jackson.
The highly praised documentary Ake, Ake, Ake – has been nominated in three categories including best factual series, Te Māngai Pāho best Māori programme and best director: documentary/factual. The show tells the story of a new generation of protest via a deeply personal account of Ihumātao and the evolution of the Save our Unique Land (SOUL) campaign.
Fan favourite Chatham Islanders has also been nominated in three categories; best factual series, best director: documentary/factual and best camerawork: documentary/factual. The seven-part documentary series shares a rare insight into life for the 600-strong community living on New Zealand's remotest islands.
“It is the combined efforts of producers, directors, independent production houses and the wider Māori media sector that make it possible to tell stories that deserve to be told, seen, and heard, by everyone, for everyone,” Roderick says.
Also on the evening, Janine Morrell-Gunn will be honoured with the 2022 Television Legend Award. The Ngāti Kahungunu uri is a former TVNZ executive producer for children's programming and is the founder of WhitebaitMedia with her husband Jason Gunn. Morrell-Gunn has contributed nearly 40 years of children's programming including The Son of a Gunn Show, Bumble, 2Kaha, Darwin and Newts, Fanimals and What Now and the inclusion of te reo Māori in Sesame Street.
The full list of nominations for Whakaata Māori are:
Best factual series
Ake, Ake, Ake - Scottie Douglas Productions Ltd / Whakaata Māori
Chatham Islanders - Black Iris Limited / Whakaata Māori
Best current affairs programme
Te Ao with Moana - Whakaata Māori
New Zealand On Air best children's programme
Tamaiti Tū - Te Noni Ltd / Whakaata Māori
Te Māngai Pāho best Māori programme
Ake, Ake, Ake - Scottie Douglas Productions Ltd / Whakaata Māori
Te Māngai Pāho best reo Māori programme
Nga Tohu Matariki o te Tau 2022 - Whakaata Māori
Best live event coverage
Super Saturday Vaxathon - Pango Productions / Various
Ngā Tohu Matariki o te Tau 2022 - Whakaata Māori
