AUCKLAND (Pacific Media Watch): Young Pacific filmmakers Joshua Iosefo and Corey Larry Sio have just recently received the news that their short film Forgotten Dawn Children will be screened in Sydney later this year at the Pasifika Film Festival.
The best friends are overwhelmed saying it is a dream come true to have a film accepted into a festival.
Originally made for a university assignment, Forgotten Dawn Children, follows main character Ioane, a middle-aged man, who is haunted by his memories of the dawn raids that took place in mid-1970s Auckland.
While going about his daily life, Ioane’s flash backs, show us the unjustifiable arrests of many Pacific Islanders whose homes were raided by police in what is now today’s trending suburbs of Ponsonby, Grey Lynn and Mount Albert.
'shocked but humbled'
Sio, the films producer, says he is “shocked but humbled” the film has been accepted into the festival.
“I didn’t think we would submit it into anything…but he did!” Sio laughs pointing to the films director, Iosefo, who is sitting next to him.
“As we were making it I was like, yeah, this is going be in a film fest!” 22-year-old Iosefo admits.
He says the film was made to honor the struggle many Pacific families dealt with during the dawn raids and how it has affected their lives today.
“I felt that there needed to be something to honor that, to honor the struggle, as well as the memories of people…memories that have just been forgotten.”
Read the extended story on Asia Pacific Report.
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