Celebration of kotahitanga

Lion King

Half of the voice actors in the upcoming The Lion King Reo Māori whakapapa or have a connection to Tairāwhiti.

The Lion King Reo Māori will be bringing te reo to movie screens across the globe when it premieres later this month.

Actors Mataara Stokes (Simba), Arihia Cassidy (Nala), Matu Ngaropo (Scar), Tuterangi Ruha (young Simba), Te Haakura Ihimaera-Manly (young Nala), Ani-Piki Tuari (Shenzi) and Ngapaki Moetara (Sarabi) all whakapapa or have a connection to the rohe.

Along with these actors, Pumbaa and Timon will be voiced by Matai Rae and Justin Rogers, Zazu will be voiced by Whatanui Flavell, Jase Te Patu and Antonio Te Maioha will play hyenas Banzai and Ed, and Te Wehi Preston will voice Rafiki.

The actors were chosen from hundreds of auditions after Matewa Media and Walt Disney Animation put the call out in September last year.

The cast worked with a team of te reo experts from each rohe to perfect the five different mita (dialects) that will be celebrated in the film.

The Tainui mita has been chosen for Simba, Mufasa and the rest of the lions of Pride Rock, in a nod to the Kiingitanga movement.

Timon and Pumba will hail from Te Taitokerau, Rafiki from Tūhoe, Zazu from Taranaki and the hyenas from Ngāti Kahungunu.

Arihia Cassidy (Ngāti Porou, Te Whānau ā Apanui, Ngāti Whātua ki Kaipara) from Ruatoria, 27, did not rush to apply for the role.

“I remember seeing it and thinking it would be cool, but I completely forgot about it until my brother told me to send in an application two days before the deadline,” Cassidy said.

She submitted a video and was contacted by the production team for an interview. After doing a few more takes with some notes, she was told over Zoom that she was going to play Nala.

“I was so shocked. I am grateful and excited for people to watch this beautiful film, and to hear it in our reo makes my heart sing. I am so stoked about that,” she said.

“To be in something like this at this point in my life is one of my greatest achievements.”

Tamariki will be able to hear their reo in a film like this, which will help normalise it, Cassidy said.

She said one of the challenges was making sure her mita was correct.

“There was plenty to learn from the experience.”

Mataara Stokes (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Porou) works in film and television, predominantly in costume and photography.

He has done a couple of television shows and worked in theatre.

A part of him thought he wasn’t good enough, but he also felt proud that he got a role.

“I was reminded that this is bigger than me, it’s about the next generation and those who hear our reo being spoken. This is about the survival of our reo Maori.”

He said Lion King is his favourite Disney movie so it “buzzes him out” that he is playing Simba.

Ngapaki Moetara (Waikato, Ngāti Ruanui, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Whanaunga, Ngāti Tuwharetoa) who lives in Tairāwhiti and is playing Sarabi, said it is surreal being a part of the te reo Māori version of Lion King.

“It is surreal to watch a movie that I loved while growing up, and then getting to be a part of giving a voice to the te reo version of it. It was hard for me to get the right tone in some of the sentences, but well worth the challenge,” Moetara said.

“It means a lot to me, mostly because we have a language that was at risk of being lost through colonisation. A lot of work and hard yards have been laid to nurture it to what it is now.

“A highlight is getting to see te reo Māori flow on the big screen and those seminal songs being translated and recreated by Rob Ruha and his team. It is going to be amazing,” she said.

Rick Dempsey, senior vice president of Disney Character Voices International, said it has been a phenomenal effort.

“The passion and excitement for this version is evident in the talented performances and direction across the board. The translation works incredibly well with the lip-syncing and timing.

“It is thrilling to see all of the hard work come together with such fantastic results.”

Performance and musical directors Rachel House (Moana Reo Māori, Hunt for the Wilderpeople) and Rob Ruha (Moana Reo Māori) reunited with the Matewa Media team to deliver reimagined films in te reo.

“Kia taorotia te reo Māori ki ngā uri puta noa, puta noa! In order for our language to thrive it must reach the hearts and homes of our people,” producer Tweedie Waititi said.

The Māori language versions of these beloved films will release in line with national celebrations.

The Lion King Reo Māori is set to premiere in New Zealand and Australia this month to align with Matariki, and Frozen Reo Maori will premiere three months later in September to align with Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, Māori Language Week.

“This is a massive kaupapa and I’m stoked with how all the mita is sitting within one film. I can’t wait for the motu to see it. One of our biggest goals we set out to achieve is kotahitanga (unity) and I believe this film is a celebration of that,” Waititi said.

The Lion King Reo Maori will premiere in Auckland on June 21, and will be available at the Gisborne Odeon and other participating cinemas in New Zealand and Australia from June 23. The film will then be available to stream on Disney+ later this year.