Lee Tamahori

Lee Tamahori honed his craft in commercials, earning respect and renown in the advertising world. His first feature was in dramatic contrast, a milestone in New Zealand cinema instantly securing his place as one of the great Maori film makers and launching a global career. Twenty-two years later he was reunited with Once Were Warriors producer Robin Scholes and star Temuera Morrison in Witi Ihimaera’s The Patriarch (Mahana) another significant event in Maori storytelling. His last film was The Convert, again with Robin Scholes as producer.