Where are the Hekes now?

Then. From left, Julian Arahanga (Nig), Temuera Morrison (Jake 'The Muss'), Rena Owen (Beth), Mamaengaroa Pere (Grace) Taungaroa Emile (Boogie), Joseph Kairau (Huata) and Rachael Morris Tautau (Polly)

Maori TV catches up with the whanau 20 years on

Twenty years ago Aotearoa's underbelly rammed a hard fist into any myths middle New Zealand held about things being all culturally correct and comfy in the brown 'burbs.

When Once Were Warriors exploded onto the big screen, the nation was shocked. It was fiction, based on the book Two Lakes by Maori writer Alan Duff, but Once Were Warriors exposed a side of life that underscores New Zealand's still awful record of poverty, poor education, domestic violence, sexual abuse, alcohol and drug-related crime.

Two of the main characters in the film were played by Northlanders - Rena Owen, as Beth Heke and Mamaengaroa Pere (nee Kerr-Bell), as her teenage daughter, Grace and both women will feature in a cast reunion on Maori TV tonight.

And now. Photo / Maori TV

Electrifying, horrifying, real grown up cinema, Once Were Warriors also put New Zealand on world screens, won international accolades, quickly became a cult classic, catapulted director Lee Tamahori into Hollywood and launched several international careers, including lead performers Temuera Morrison, Owen and Cliff Curtis.

Some of the cast and crew have remained working in film and television while others opted out of the business.

Tonight Maori TV will show the documentary Once Were Warriors - Where are they now?, about the 'Heke whanau', directed by original cast member Julian Arahanga, who played eldest son Nig Heke in the film.

To mark the film's 20th, the channel screened Once Were Warriors last night and will show the less successful but equally shocking sequel, What Becomes of the Broken Hearted, next Sunday.

In next Saturday's feature section, the Northern Advocate catches up with Warriors' two lead female cast members, who both grew up in Northland. We interviewed Owen, whose role and stellar performance as Beth carried the Heke whanau through the movie and anchored the story, and Pere, who gave an unforgettably accomplished performance in the tragic role of the teenaged girl, Grace.