New Zealand Studies

This course examines the socio-cultural and political impact of New Zealand films foregrounding Māori, both in front of and especially, behind the camera. It looks primarily at how Māori filmmakers have used cinema as a means to reassert cultural identity and tino rangatiratanga, from its activist beginnings during the Māori Cultural Renaissance in the 1980s, to the present.

This course is a practical and theoretical introduction to performing cultures of the Pacific with emphasis on Polynesian cultures. Basic music and dance skills are taught in practical instruction. Consideration of commonalities and differences among Pacific cultures. Academic discussion of styles, instruments, performer categories and the place of the performing arts in Pacific cultures.

This course examines how Indigenous knowledge and ‘Western’ science work against, with or independent of each other and look at examples of how science contributes to Indigenous development. This international approach fosters cross-cultural communication skills, sharing of theory and practice, and comparative analysis of the situations of Indigenous peoples in global contexts.