A Boy Called Piano: The Story of Fa’amoana John Luafutu (Nina Nawalowalo, 2022)
Unclassified 15+ | 57 mins | 2022 | DCP | Aotearoa/NZ| D: Nina Nawalowalo
Samoan, English – English subtitles
A Boy Called Piano – The Story of Fa’amoana John Luafutu tells the remarkable story of Fa’amoana’s time as a state ward in the 1960s and the intergenerational impacts of these experiences. The film was directed by Nina Nawalowalo and produced by Katherine Wyeth, with Executive Producer Tom McCrory, and stars Fa’amoana himself, his son Matthias, and grandsons Tāne and Micah, alongside Aaron McGregor, Tupe Lualua and Patrick Nawalowalo McCrory, with a stunning score by Mark Vanilau.
Growing from the long-term collaboration with Fa’amoana Luafutu and the Luafutu Aiga, the film blends dramatised sequences inspired by the play A Boy Called Piano – written by Fa’amoana Luafutu and Tom McCrory – with powerful interviews and beautiful aerial and underwater photography, translating Nina Nawalowalo’s celebrated visual storytelling to the screen for the first time. Nawalowalo’s theatre company, The Conch, has been honoured to walk alongside Fa’amoana and the Luafutu Aiga as they courageously bring their untold story into the light, with the kaupapa of connecting directly with survivors and illuminating the survivor experience in wider society.
Preview short film: Honour to Senator Murray Sinclair
2021 | Unclassified | 29 mins | DCP | CAN | D: Alanis Obomsawin
As the Chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Senator Murray Sinclair was a key figure in raising global awareness of the atrocities of Canada’s residential school system. With determination, wisdom and kindness, Senator Sinclair remains steadfast in his belief that the path to actual reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people requires understanding and accepting often difficult truths about Canada’s past and present.
Abenaki filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin shares the powerful speech the Senator gave when he accepted the WFM – Canada World Peace Award, interspersing the heartbreaking testimonies of former students imprisoned at residential schools. The honouring of Senator Sinclair reminds us to honour the lives and legacies of the tens of thousands of Indigenous children taken from their homes and cultures and leaves us with a profound sense of hope for a better future.
Join us for a post-screening Q&A with A Boy Called Piano director Nina Nawalowalo and filmmaker Matthias Luafutu, son of Fa’amoana Luafutu.
The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia is proud to partner with BIRRARANGGA Film Festival, celebrating global Indigenous films that explore the curatorial themes of ‘strength, resilience and the environment’. View the full program
The details
What: A Boy Called Piano: The Story of Fa’amoana John Luafutu screening + Honour to Senator Murray Sinclair short film + Q&A with director Nina Nawalowalo and filmmaker Matthias Luafutu
When: Saturday 22 June at 6pm
Where: NFSA (Arc Cinema)
Cost: $17–22; $13 Blak Tix; discounted 3-Film and 5-Film passes available. Book tickets
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