The video opens at Te Mānuka tūtahi in Whakatāne, where a group of children sit before Pou Tikanga, Pou Pūrākau (cultural leader, storyteller) Joe Harawira (Ngāti Awa, Ngāi Te Rangi).
"Tihei mauri ora," he says. "Welcome to our world."
The story follows Tiaki, which is both a Māori word that "connects us to care for our people, our place and our culture," and the name of the video's protagonist. He boards a waka rererangi (flying canoe) and sets off on an adventure across Aotearoa. With the help of Air New Zealand and Julie (a character designed to embody the rest of New Zealand), he visits Māori guardians Papatūānuku (the land), Tangaroa (sea), Tāne Mahuta (forest) and Ranginui (sky). Along the way he seeks advice from these guardians on how better to look after them ... as well as learning aviation protocols like where to find your lifejacket along the way.
Tiaki is also the name of the initiative created by Air New Zealand, Tourism New Zealand and five other industry partners, including Department of Conservation and NZ Māori Tourism, which encourages people - both Kiwis and tourists - to make a commitment to care for Aotearoa.
Director Jason Bock (Ngā Puhi) said he wanted the video to capture the tone of Māori mythology and whakataukī (proverbs) but in a way that was authentic, respectful and accurate.
A team of experienced craftspeople and cultural advisors were brought on board, including Harawira, an educator and advisor on Kaupapa Māori.
Making a safety video funny is an arguably easy task (not to say Air NZ hasn't failed, many, many times). A far greater challenge is creating one that is meaningful while also clearly explaining aviation protocols. In this instance it means heartfelt lines about Tāne Mahuta, who gifted us "the very air we breathe" are chased by reminders of how "if you need air, oxygen masks will fall from above".
The result, to be honest, is a little jarring at times. One moment Tiaki is paddling his hand-carved waka across a serene lake, the next he's propped in a luxurious business class seat, showing us how to brace.
However, one can't exactly fault an airline safety video for including, well, airline safety.
Which is why, as bold a call as it may be, this could be one of Air New Zealand's best videos yet.
Sure, it doesn't have the cringy cameos, migraine-inducing jingles or sexist jokes we love to hate but instead takes the few precious minutes it has with locals and visitors alike (around 17 million per year pre-Covid) to talk about something that matters - something we can all be proud of.
