Director Heperi Mita celebrates the success of his friend Taika Waititi, and explains what it means for Māori and indigenous creatives around the world. There was a moment during the 2020 Academy awards where I saw Taika Waititi, Chelsea Winstanley and Ra Vincent, and realised that in just one generation Māori filmmakers had gone from … Read more
Accepting his Oscar, national treasure Taika Waititi gave a widely-praised acceptance speech that he nevertheless later described as ‘the worst’. Giving speeches that get everyone talking has become something of a habit for the actor/director/screenwriter – here are 10 other examples Taika Waititi is unique among public speakers in that he seems to actively reject … Read more
The latest film by New Zealand’s celebrity director Taika Waititi, Jojo Rabbit, is out in cinemas now. Spinoff writers offer their thoughts on the ‘anti-hate satire’, and whether it lives up to Waititi’s catalogue of hits. Sam Brooks, culture editor I had a lovely time watching Jojo Rabbit – it’s an enjoyable, tense coming-of-age film that … Read more
Alex Casey talks to Wellington-born Thomasin McKenzie, Sylvanian Family enthusiast and star of Jojo Rabbit. At just 19, Thomasin McKenzie has already played a sexual assault survivor, a cancer patient and a Jewish teenager hiding in the walls during WW2. I was pleased to see her enjoying a day off on her mum’s Instagram the … Read more
In the latest in our occasional series which look for signs of literary life in the regions, Kerry Sunderland studies Nelson – and talks to an author whose book is being filmed right this second, in Prague, by some guy called Taika Waititi. Two words: Maurice Gee. Of course literature exists in Nelson; New Zealand’s … Read more