On the remote shores of Aotearoa, a Māori father and son honour stranded whales as sacred ancestors – preserving their bones for cultural healing, brewing medicine to save ancient forests, and protecting the endangered Pacific rat, kiore, on a nearby island.

Five years in the making, the film Unlikely Kin began as a simple curiosity about whales, kiore, and kauri but quickly became something much deeper.

In the words of the filmmakers Kim Webby and Mike Jonathon: “For us as filmmakers, this journey has been about people, whakapapa, resilience, and our relationship with the natural world.

“Along the way, we found ourselves challenged, inspired, and constantly reminded that some of the most powerful stories come from those living quietly and purposefully on the whenua.”

Webby, a well-known and highly acclaimed documentary maker from Ōpōtiki, said the genesis of the film was an invite to a marae near her Ōpōtiki home after a mass whale stranding.

On arriving, she saw around 40 pilot whale heads placed around the perimeter and a cultural harvest under way.

From this event and over the next five years, the film grew to include kauri dieback disease, the kiore, and a deeper engagement with mātauranga Māori in relation to te taiao, the natural world.

At the centre of the film are Hori Parata and his son, Te Kaurinui.

Keeping alive the intergenerational knowledge and tikanga associated with the cultural harvest of stranded whales, as significant taonga to the associated Māori communities.

The story of Hori and Te Kaurinui also explores the interconnectedness of all living things, especially the relationship between the whale and the kauri, and the kiore (Pacific rat), all significant taonga species to Māori.

Particularly profound is the notion that whales can help heal kauri trees: one ancient life supporting another.

Unlikely Kin had its debut at a sold-out screening at the Doc Edge Festival in Tāmaki Makaurau, where Webby received The Raye Freedman Legacy Award.

Thanks to the support of the Doc Edge Festival and Webby, the De Luxe Theatre will be hosting an exclusive screening and Q & A with Webby on Monday, July 27 at 6pm.

Tickets are selling fast, and seating is limited so don’t delay getting your ticket online at deluxetheatre.co.nz.

The ticket price includes light refreshments.