Tina, the debut feature film of Miki Magasiva is a love letter to both Samoan culture and how choral music, across cultures, can assist people in change. The way art can enable acceptance of the richness of our difference. But Tina is also centrally about how Pasifika women are leaders in taking culture forward. The title translates in English as mother, or female elder. And in the lead role Anapela Polata'ivao plays Mareta, a mother struggling after the death of her daughter in the 2011 Christchurch Earthquake. Taking on a job as a teacher at a wealthy Pakeha-dominated private school, Mareta connects with kids who it turns out also really need support. She takes them all the way to the Big Sing National Choir Competition. Anapela Polata'ivao gives a remarkable performance. She is the constant, complex beating heart of this movie. As a director and actor Anapela has long played a significant leadership role in bringing Pacific voices to stage and screen, and last year became an officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in recognition of her service. We welcomed her to Culture 101 to play 'Fast Favourites' where her choices were Lindah Lepou, Jordyn with a Why and writer directors Arianne Mnouchkine, Vela Manusaute and Nina Nawalowalo.
The Ngai Tahu High Court case against the Crown over freshwater and Christchurch marking the 14th anniversary of the 2011 earthquake.
In the bringing together of art and mental health, Kim Morton is a champion. Following the Christchurch earthquakes, Kim founded Otautahi Creative Spaces, a busy creative community in inner city suburb Philipstown.
Street art has played a major role in bringing life back to Christchurch post-Earthquakes. A major player has been Watch This Space. They are a charitable trust established almost 10 years ago that organises and maintains public art projects in Christchurch, updates their interactive map helping people explore the city, and runs tours. Dr Reuben Woods is the creative director of Watch this Space.
There's a big weekend in store for Christchurch where the curtain is being raised on the new Court Theatre. The new $56 million playhouse is the theatre's first permanent home since the 2011 earthquake destroyed its Arts Centre venue.
David discusses the latest news in North Canterbury including updates on the earthquake damaged Glen Alton bridge funding, calls for a local driving licence test route in Kaikoura, reactions from local mayors on the government's bid to get young people off a jobseekers benefit, and there have been reports of dog attacks on little penguins along Kaikoura's coastline. David Hill is a Local Democracy Reporter with North Canterbury News, based in Rangiora.
Artist and landscape architect Bridget Allen wouldn't have known how appropriate the name of her gardening business was to be when she set it up, out of Ilam art school and working at the Christchurch Botanic Gardens. The name Regenerative Gardening Maintenance was prophetic given her city and its landscape was about to start regenerating. The 2010-2011 Canterbury earthquakes saw not only buildings turned to rubble, large tracts of land, including an area around Ōtākaro Avon River the size of two New York Central Parks, started to turn from suburbia back to nature. The red zone has been turning green ever since. In the wake of tragedy artists and gardeners came together to innovate and create new public spaces, with an eye on sustainability and community connection. Allen cofounded New Brighton sewing charity Stitch-o-Mat and retrained as a landscape architect. Since 2023 she has been the director of The Green Lab, which began after the quakes as Greening the Rubble, creating urban green spaces and events for connection, while also working with residents to make their own backyards more sustainable. Ever busy with working and planting bees, workshops to build habitats for plants and nature, and consultations to help people make their backyards more sustainable, on August 16 Bridget is running with The Green Lab Birds of Brighton printmaking workshops. It's at the Make Station in New Brighton Mall at 11am and 1pm. No experience is needed. She joined Culture 101's Mark Amery.
Money is being put ahead of lives according the husband of a woman who died when the CTV building pancaked in the Christchurch earthquake. The government is moving to a new risk based approach to earthquake strengthening, saying it will save building owners more than $8.2 billion across New Zealand. Under the rules a building like the CTV building would not automatically be deemed earhquake prone. Professor Mann Alkaisi who's wife died in that building, spoke to Lisa Owen.
Ever wondered what happened to some of the damaged timber from the Lyttelton wharves after the Canterbury earthquakes? The tough ironbark they were made from was too good not to be rescued and Oxford's Steve Evans was just the man for the job, as Mark Leishman discovered.
You might be prepared for an earthquake or a flood, but how prepared are we for a volcanic eruption? University of Canterbury Professor, Tom Wilson spoke to Corin Dann.
Finishing touches are getting added to the country's biggest indoor sport and aquatics centre, which opens to the public in central Christchurch in less than a fortnight. The long-delayed $500 million building, Parakiore, has a 50-metre competition pool and five hydroslides, as well as nine sports courts and a High Performance Sport New Zealand training base. It replaces the much-missed QEII park facilities destroyed in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake. Anna Sargent reports.
A Christchurch man has ditched his home insurance after his premiums went up $1000, or 30% a year based on new risk pricing. Tower insurance has taken into account the risk of sea surge and landslips for the Burwood home, as well as earthquakes and flooding. But Trevor Taylor says his home is several kilometres from the sea and he can't fathom the insurer Tower's sea surge assessment. Trevor Taylor spoke to Lisa Owen.
