Cinema lovers are looking forward to this year’s Te Kuki Airani Film Festival, where filmmakers and creatives will come together to share ideas and showcase their creativity and imagination in public.

This year's festival, which aims to promote and exhibit indigenous cinema to the Cook Islands community, will be held from November 23 to 27.

This year, organisers are eager to introduce the first ever Short Film Competition, an initiative set up to help new and emerging filmmakers bring their stories to life on the big screen.

Storytellers Inc, a Cook Islands based organisation, will be helping to organise the film festival. Led by Joshua Baker, the committee consists of Cook Islanders who each have a vested interest in improving the opportunities made available to our Cook Islands people.

To enter the competition, one of the main criteria is that you must be of Cook Island Maori descent. Others are encouraged to team up with someone who is of Cook Islands Māori descent.

People who are interested in participating are encouraged to sign up via the online form available on the @TKAFF Facebook page. Genres will depend on the feedback from the participants.

The crowd at Te Kuki Airani Film Festival in 2019 at the National Auditorium. TKAFF/21081316

“What is unique about this opportunity is that it is open to five teams or individuals and each team or individual will be given an online mentor to help them with their filmmaking journey. Online workshops and digital resources will become available to the ones that sign up,” says Baker.

The public can expect to see unique stories told on screen by our Pasifika people. “Submissions close on the 20th August and that’s when the fun begins!”

The committee have been working closely with New Zealand based organisations such as Pacific Islands Screen Artists Group and Script to Screen who have partnered with the film competition. Tiki Lounge Productions (creators of Coconet TV and Fresh TV) will be supporting the event this year as well. 

Participants will be in to win amazing prizes and the winning team will win a cash prize.

At the conclusion of the competition on November 8, Baker says they hope to have five amazing films that can go out into the international film festival circuit representing Te Kūki ‘Āirani Film Festival. 

Maru Apera, the vice-president of the Storytellers Inc committee, says: “This is an amazing opportunity for aspiring filmmakers to get their name out there in the international market, and we hope to get support from the community to allow this to happen.”

“We are very excited about the opportunities that could come from this! The inspiration for me, to be part of the Storytellers Inc stemmed from the successful launch of TKAFF back in 2018. Since then, the momentum has not ceased but has elevated to supporting Joshua Baker in formalising Storytellers Inc.

“The committee are very fortunate and excited to be part of this amazing organisation and we encourage our creative and talented Cook Islanders to get filming and start telling your story.”

More information will be released in the near future about the lineup of films this year and the partnerships formed through the film festival.