Kāinga

kāinga

2022 | Producers Kerry Warkia, Kiel McNaughton, Shuchi Kothari

Anthology feature Kāinga explores what the concept of 'home' ('kāinga' in te reo Māori) means to Asian-Kiwi families in Aotearoa. The writers and directors are Māori-Chinese, Chinese, Filipino, Indian, Iranian, Japanese, Korean, Malaysian, Myanmar and Tamil Eelam.

The film is split into eight ten-minute shorts and spans half a century. Each story is set in the same suburban house, and explores a different immigrant experience of New Zealand. Kāinga follows on from acclaimed anthology films Waru and the Pacific-spanning Vai.

An asian woman with long black hair wearing a cream-colored dress with embroidered decorative trim, standing outdoors against a background of a cloudy sky and ocean.

Key Creative Credits

Producers

Kerry Warkia, Kiel McNaughton, Shuchi Kothari

Directors

Michelle Ang, Ghazaleh Golbakhsh, Nahyeon Lee, Angeline Loo, Hash Perambalam, Mei-Lin Te Puea Hansen, Nahyeon Lee, Asuka Sylvie, Julie Zhu

Writers

Shreya Gejji, Ghazaleh Golbakhsh, Angeline Loo, Mia Maramara, Hash Perambalam, Asuka Sylvie, Yamin Tun

Full credits

Panel of people sitting on stage during the Whānau Mārama New Zealand International Film Festival in Kãinga, with a large screen displaying a woman and festival information in the background.

awards

2024 New Zealand Television Awards / Ngā Taonga Whakaata O Aotearoa

Nominated for Best Director: Michelle Ang, Ghazaleh Golbakhsh, Nahyeon Lee, Angeline Loo, Hash Perambalam, Mei-Lin Te Puea Hansen, Nahyeon Lee, Asuka Sylvie, Julie Zhu


Nominated for Best Production Design: Riria Lee

2022 Hawai'i International Film Festival
NETPAC award - Best Asian Film
Special Mention - Best Pasifika Feature Film category

Panel discussion with Shuchi Kothari, Shreya Gejji and Mia Maramara, seated in front of a screen showing a still from 'Kainga'; audience seated in a theater with green curtains and palm plant.

Festivals & SCreenings

World Premiere

2022 New Zealand International Film Festival July, Auckand, Christchurch, Dunedin, New Zealand

Festivals & Screenings

2025 Kuan Du Film Festival, Taipei, October

2023 International Film Festival of India, Goa, November

2023 Radio New Zealand free-to-air online platform, August

2023 Asian Pacific Film Festival, LA & San Francisco, May

2023 Maoriland Festival, Ōtaki, New Zealand, March

2023 Melbourne Women’s Festival, February

2022 Hawaii International Film Festiva, Honolulu, November

2022 Melbourne International Film Festival, August

See more of shuchi’s work

See more moving image by Shuchi Kothari.