| Whale Rider | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 1 Nomination | |
| Year | 2003 |
| Director | Niki Caro |
| Writer | Niki Caro |
| Starring | Keisha Castle-Hughes, Rawiri Paratene, Vicky Haughton |
| 76th Academy Awards | |
Whale Rider is a 2003 drama film directed by Niki Caro, based on the novel of the same name by Witi Ihimaera. The film stars Keisha Castle-Hughes as Kahu Paikea Apirana, a 12-year-old Maori girl who wants to become the chief of the tribe. Her grandfather Koro believes that this is a role reserved for males only. The film was a co-production between New Zealand and Germany. It was shot on location in Whangara, the setting of the novel.
Nominations
Plot[]
On the east coast of New Zealand, Whangara. The iwi believe their presence there dates back a thousand years or more to a single ancestor, Paikea, who escaped death when his canoe capsized by riding to shore on the back of a whale. From then on, The chiefs, always the first-born, always male, have been considered Paikea's direct descendants. Pai, an 11-year-old girl in a patriarchal Maori tribe, believes she is worthy of becoming the new chief. But her grandfather Koro is bound by tradition to pick a male leader. Pai loves Koro more than anyone in the world, but she must fight him and a thousand years of tradition to fulfill her destiny.
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