Breaking Down Barriers: PKL Elevates Pacific Storytelling To The Big Screen With Digital Showcase

Pacific Kids’ Learning (PKL) continues to make significant strides in revitalising and strengthening cultural knowledge, language, and identity in children and young people. From their first digital showcase at the Mangere Arts Centre four years ago to a four-day showcase at HOYTS Cinemas, PKL has grown remarkably in its mission.

Last weekend at HOYTS Cinemas Sylvia Park, PKL showcased Digital Navigators, Legacy of the Islands, a feature-length compilation film that follows the adventure of two spirited children from South Auckland, 'Alisi and Semisi, as they navigate the islands of Te Moana Nui a Kiwa through digital storytelling.

PKL Film Director Herman Aviu described the film as a blend of traditional knowledge-sharing methods and modern technologies, featuring rich animations that advance traditional Pacific languages and uphold Pacific culture.

“Our kids are on their devices all the time and you want them to watch things that enhance their culture. What we do at PKL is put content out there that is culturally responsive for our kids, and that we know is of immense value,” said Aviu.

“This whole experience has sparked something in me – it’s a dream that I’ve always wanted to do for my people, for our Pacific community, and now that we’ve come this far – we can take it to the next level.”

Theresa Tupuola-Sorenson, co-founder and Education Director of PKL, said it’s about valuing Pacific cultures and languages in a mainstream setting.

“Pacific people are historically quite excluded from the screen industry, and we’ve been able to find a way to bring our stories to the big screen with the support of our sponsors. It’s really important that our children see our cultures, our history, and our languages up on the big screen.”

And it’s not all about PKL, she said: “It’s about those primary school students who gifted us their stories. They co-wrote them with their elders and their parents and they’ve gifted them to us to professionally animate. Now we can share it with the world.

“We want to journey together, and moving into the digital space is not something that we want to do independently – it's really important to co-design and to collaborate with the community.”

PKL co-founder and finance director, Tatiana Marich, said as a social enterprise, Pacific Kids’ Learning focuses on social good over profit, and any surpluses at the end of the year are pumped back into creating new content for kids.

“Through our work with the young Pasifika animators, we try to give that opportunity to all children to move away from purely consuming content and move towards creating content. Everyone’s stories matter, and there are some beautiful stories out there.”

Marich encouraged those who do not see their culture represented in the Pacific Digital Library to reach out to the team: “We want to hear from community collaborators able to work with us. We want to hear from composers, choreographers, illustrators, animators – everyone involved in the creative process.”

New content from the film will be released on the Pacific Digital Library throughout the year.

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