A short film by young Samoan writer and director, Tusi Tamasese, is coming to Wellington for the New Zealand International Film Festival. Va Tapuia – Sacred Spaces was shot entirely in Samoa and stars Malae Lialia’i and Lena Rivers in the lead roles. Upolu Island in Samoa provides the background for this post-cyclone drama, concerning a grieving taro farmer who encounters an angry widow sitting on the beach near her devastated village. The dialogue is exclusively in the Samoan language with English subtitles. The film is 15 minutes long and is a precursor to Tamasese’s feature film which he intends to shoot in Samoa at the end of the year. For information on screenings during the festival, please visit http://www.nzff.co.nz/.
