DIRECTOR | DP | PHOTOGRAPHER

For over a decade, Matavai Taulangaū has been building a Tongan filmic language centred around the concept of mafana—warmth within a Tongan perspective. This filmic practice of mafana enters each frame and each interaction between who is being filmed and who is behind the camera. It has spanned multiple territories of filming, from commercial to community to home as the site of filmic exploration. 

Coming to the film industry from a moving image arts background, Matavai began developing his visual language through collaborations with his own Tongan community in Kaikohe, filming the polopolo (kumala harvest) in order to explore food sovereignty as a means of community care and work that both feeds and nurtures cultural practices. He is grounded in his work with his long-time collaborator, Anaseini—his mother—exploring the interconnectedness of lalanga (weaving) and gardening. 

Deeply concerned with the lens as a means of power in controlling a narrative, both through filming and editing, Matavai continues to grow his collaborations with the women and gender non-conforming people in his life, including his partner, and his kin/chosen family. Through his work behind the camera, Matavai works to address Tongan masculinities, gender structures and hierarchies. Taking on his mother’s role of caregiver in his work as a filmmaker, Matavai opens up different ways of existing with tenderness inside of masculinity.

Matavai has contributed to many film projects over the years as a director, DP, videographer and photographer, including music videos for various NZ artists, short-film photography, sports promos, community-led documentaries, and commercial content.