He Pounamu Ko Āu (I am Pounamu) is a kaupapa Māori experimental short film that explores wahine Māori identity. The film unfolds through moving image, pounamu pūrākau (storytelling), mōteatea (sung Māori poetry), and ambient sound. Created for healing and as an expression of the story of overcoming the adversity of colonisation and the artist's reconnection to indigenous female identity, the work draws on maternal whakapapa (genealogy) to celebrate intergenerational wāhine talent.
He Pounamu Ko Āu traverses the application of a mana wāhine Māori paradigm and brings forth knowledge from whakapapa, whakawhanaungatanga (establishing relationships with people, place, and ancestors) and wairuatanga (the spirituality of people and places). The film applies a conceptual identity framework of a pounamu pūrākau methodology developed by Dr Alvina Jean Edwards, which unpacks the questions "ko wai āu? No whea āu? Who am I? Where do I come from?"
Filmed entirely in Te Waipounamu (South Island of New Zealand), He Pounamu Ko Āu activates a distinctive filmmaking process that evokes healing and connection.
