Tainui Stephens
Tainui Stephens (Te Rarawa) is one of our foremost Māori broadcasters. He has worked as a reporter, writer, director, producer and executive producer. His credits include Maori Battalion March to Victory and The New Zealand Wars.
Stephens was a stalwart of TVNZ’s Māori Programmes department in the 1980s and 90s, working on the regular series Koha, Waka Huia, Marae and Mai Time.
In this interview Tainui Stephens discusses:
- being raised by his Pākehā mother, and his own personal journey “into my Māoridom”
- beginning work at TVNZ Māori Programmes in 1984, and how much he enjoyed his work there
- how he loves all the programmes he has worked on over the years
- the good that Māori broadcasting can do
- the Maori Television Service, its success, and the important role it plays in New Zealand life.
This interview is available on YouTube for distribution via a Creative Commons licence.
Credits: Interview by Monika Ahuriri, camera and direction by Clare O’Leary. Editing by Leo Guerchmann.
NZ ON SCREEN 2012