Kapaemahu Selected for The Animation Showcase 2020

Kapaemahu has been selected for the 2020 edition of The Animation Showcase, a curated film program whose annual “Best of the Year” selection highlights films that have the best chance at being shortlisted and/or nominated for the Academy Awards Best Animated Short Film category. It is the brainchild of Benoit Berthe Siward, a French animation enthusiast who created the initiative in summer 2016 as a joint collaboration with the Soho House London.

Hawai’i International Film Festival 2020: Gathering Community

Among the festival’s “Made in Hawai’i” shorts, several stood out. Richly animated in golds and rusts by Daniel Sousa in a manner reminiscent of Michel Ocelot’s Kirikou and the Sorceress, Kapaemahu (Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu, Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson) retells the ancient origin story of four fabled stones in Waikiki, created to honor four “dual male and female spirit” healers from Tahiti who brought the healing arts to Hawai’i. Its post-film Zoom Q&A was particularly rewarding, with a welcoming hula performed by an Oakland-based collective and several insights from the creative team. “I am Kanaka — a native person in an island nation that was illegally overthrown and continues to be occupied by a foreign power,” notes Wong-Kalu in the film’s press kit. “Our survival as indigenous people depends on our ability to know and practice our cultural traditions, to speak and understand our language, and to feel an authentic connection to our own history. That is why I wanted to make a film about Kapaemahu, and to write and narrate it in Olelo Niihau – the only form of Hawaiian that has been continuously spoken since prior to the arrival of foreigners. We need to be active participants in telling our own stories in our own way.”

Award-Winning Hawaiian Animation ‘Kapaemahu’ Joins Criterion Channel

“Kanaka Pakipika with Pacific Islanders in Communications, with funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, present the powerful animated short Kapaemahu, available on The Criterion Channel on December 1. A winner at numerous international film festivals including the Tribeca Film Festival, Animayo International Film Festival, Atlanta Film Festival, Hiroshima International Animation Festival and Outfest Film Festival, Kapaemahu is a reminder of the rich cultures and diverse identities that deserve recognition and representation through storytelling.” – Mercedes Milligan, Animation Magazine

Best Indigenous Language Production Award at imagineNATIVE Film & Media Arts Festival

On Sunday, October 25, 2020 at imagineNATIVE‘s online Awards Presentation, the esteemed Sun Jury and Moon Jury considered film, video, audio, and digital media works from Canadian and international Indigenous artists to select winners in 16 categories with over $53,000 in cash prizes and in-kind services. Best Indigenous Language Production with support from Indigenous Media Initiatives for a $2,500 cash prize went to Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu and team for Kapaemahu.

The Power of Myth, Healing & Kapaemahu

The animated short, Kapaemahu, is a contender for the Academy Awards and I can easily see why after seeing it as part of the 36th annual month-long Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. The art style is simply fantastic. The sepia tones evoke a dream-like quality to contrast the past to the present. As the tale shifts from a quiet watcher to that of a child being told of his heritage, I firmly believe what’s presented here is a far better tale than Disney’s Moana. Both are terrific in its regard of what Polynesian culture represents, but if I had to choose which is more respectful in its production, it’s with Won-Kalu’s work! 5 Stars out of 5

HollyShorts Reveals Star-Heavy Virtual Festival Lineup (Exclusive)

The 2020 competition lineup includes In Hollywoodland, starring Yetide Badaki and Karen David; the Francia Raisa-starring Second Act; Morad Mostafa’s drama Henet Ward; Eagle, featuring The Daily Show’s Roy Wood Jr.; the sci-fi short Proxy; Chloe Campion’s documentary The Race; the comedic miniseries Louey & Bri, starring Luis Guzman and Bri Smith; Ashley Williams’ directorial debut Meats; Sex Education director Alice Seabright’s comedy End-O; Furlough, from The Originals’ Phoebe Tonkin; and the animated short Kapaemahu.

The virtual HollyShorts Film Festival will take place Nov. 9 to 15, 2020.

Kapaemahu Wins Outfest LA Audience Award

Kapaemahu wins Audience Award for Best Narrative Short at Outfest Los Angeles and is included in an Encore Week of virtual screenings. Beginning Monday, August 31 and ending Monday, September 7, a selection of this year’s films will be available once again, each for a 24-hour period.