Make it or Break it

                Those who wish to create indigenous media for (especially for mass consumption) face one main obstacle. Due to the fact that almost all indigenous populations have pervasive and damaging stereotypes attached to their communities, any media produced by them for mass consumption must make or break these stereotypes. In the case of such movies as ‘The Whale Rider’, the decision was made to accept and form the basis of the films narrative around the sexism inherent in Maori culture, addressing that burgeoning societal problem reflected by the sexual and domestic abuse statistics within the community. But rather than shedding light on the topic in the way which was brought forth in ‘Once Were Warriors’, where the film is one long statement concerning the aforementioned societal woes in their most explicit and horrific forms, ‘The Whale Rider’ and other films have chosen the path of exploring their social problems through the use of characters that overcome the oppression around them, rather than succumbing to it. When media is produced by and for the Caucasian West or any other majority group, there need be no explanations of why a family is well-adjusted and functional, whereas in many indigenous films those who produce them are bound to provide such an explanation, either by separating the protagonists from their indigenous communities, or by providing side-characters which personify the most vicious stereotypes which are attached to them.

Callum Dunphy