Merata Mita
Film-maker
June 19, 1942 - May 31, 2010
I have this theory that all New Zealanders MUST view all of the following:
1. Outrageous Fortune, Series 1-6: Because it proved we can make telly as good as anywhere in the world.
2. Goodbye Pork Pie: The funniest, most free-spirited movie we've ever made.
3. Bad Taste/Meet The Feebles/Braindead: Peter Jackson was a great film-maker long before Lord of the Rings.
4. Once Were Warriors: Powerful with three capital Ps. Will break your heart, lift your spirits AND kick you in the guts.
5. Patu!
No 5 probably doesn't have anywhere near the profile of the first four, and that's very unfortunate. It is, quite simply, the best - and most powerful - documentary ever made in this country.
It's the shocking story of one of the most shameful moments in New Zealand history, sporting or otherwise - the 1981 Springbok tour.
I first saw Patu! when I was a tertiary student, and I was stunned. The images of barbed wire, shields, police batons and common New Zealanders being beaten up for protesting the visit of a team from a racist regime were seared into me.
Using just the images - my memory deserts me a little but there is either no narration or virtually none - director Merata Mita presents a gut-wrenching view of the tour.
The story of how she made it is fascinating enough. Many of her camera operators were themselves the victims of violence, and had film ripped out. She struggled to find funding support. Much of the footage had to be sent overseas for safekeeping.
Later in her career, Mita helmed the film Mauri. But it is for Patu!, and her bravery in telling the story, that she will be best remembered.
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