The trailer for New Zealand film “Mārama” has been released.
Set in Victorian-era North Yorkshire, the gothic horror film follows a young Māori woman named Mary fighting to reclaim her identity and connect with her whakapapa and culture while living in a foreign land.
“She uncovers her horrific colonial heritage and is compelled to confront and destroy the Englishman who devastated her family,” according to the official synopsis.
“Mary gradually discovers he is an obsessive, fetishistic collector of Māori cultural artefacts. Even worse, he harbours a gruesome, secret history from his years spent ‘harvesting’ the waters off New Zealand.
“Living among her ancestors’ appropriated treasures, Mary finds herself washed by a cavalcade of disturbing visions and dreams.
“As Mary unravels the full horrific truth of her colonial heritage, she embraces the spiritual Matakite (seer) powers inherited from her Māori female predecessors and takes on her true identity as Mārama.”
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As reported by Variety, production got underway on “Mārama” around Auckland on Aotearoa’s North Island and in the South Island’s Orago region last year.
The film is helmed by Māori writer-director Taratoa Stappard (“Taumanu, Emkhatsini”), and features Māori actor Ariana Osborne (“Madam,” “In a Flash”) in the lead role, alongside British actor Toby Stephens (“Black Sails,” “Die Another Day,” “Percy Jackson and The Olympians”).
The cast also stars Umi Myers (“Bob Marley: One Love,” “Dope Girls”) along with New Zealanders Erroll Shand (“Savage,” “The Luminaries”) and Jordan Mooney (“The Bluff,” “Pike River”).
“Mārama” is produced by Sharlene George (“Taumanu,” “Testify,” “Birds Eye View”), co-CEO and founding partner of production company The Sweetshop.
“Mārama” was developed with support from Te Tumu Whakaata Taonga (The New Zealand Film Commission), imagineNATIVE, The Black List, Toronto International Film Festival, the Zurich Film Festival and the Berlinale Co-Production Market.
The film is being made in association with the New Zealand Film Commission, NZ On Air, Whakaata Māori and Images & Sound. Vendetta Films will distribute the completed film in Australia and New Zealand. MPI International will manage global rights sales.
“This film will be confronting, bloody and entirely unique, and I’m excited to be forging a new genre: Māori gothic horror,” said Stappard.
“Mārama” is set to hit New Zealand cinemas from February 12, 2026.