Virtual Kahaukani Conversations – Hawaiian Soul
Join us to celebrate Lā Honua (Earth Day) with a special virtual screening of the short film Hawaiian Soul, followed by Q & A with writer and director ‘Āina Paikai.
Recipient of Hawai‘i International Film Festival 2020 “Best Made in Hawai‘i Short” and “Audience Award,” Hawaiian Soul is a narrative short-film dedicated to real-life Hawaiian hero, George Jarrett Helm Jr.. Set against the backdrop of the 1970’s native rights movement, George Helm, a young Hawaiian activist and musician must gain the support of kūpuna (community elders) from Maui to aid in the fight of protecting the precious neighboring island of Kaho‘olawe from military bombing.
This short, fictional story is based on true events and captures key moments where music fuels both George’s passions of celebrating Hawaiian culture and guarding what’s left of it.
Find more information about the movie at the Hawaiian Soul website hawaiiansoulmovie.com.
Watch the movie trailer HERE.
Click below to register; the Zoom link will be emailed to you prior to the presentation. We hope to see you there!
About the Speaker
ʻĀina Paikai is from Waiau, on the island of O‘ahu. He is a Native Hawaiian filmmaker determined to tell the stories of his homeland. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s Academy for Creative Media under the tutelage of pioneer filmmaker, Merata Mita. ʻĀina has spent the past 10 years, the entirety of his professional career, as a shooter/producer/editor for ‘ŌiwiTV, learning from accomplished filmmaker and businessman, Nāʻālehu Anthony. As part of ʻŌiwiTV, he has been fortunate enough to experience traveling the world, most recently as a crewmember and documentarian aboard Hōkūleʻa during the Mālama Honua Worldwide Voyage. He has recently retired from ʻŌiwiTV to spend more time with his budding family, wife Annemarie, and two young children and focus on pursuing his passion for narrative filmmaking in Hawaiʻi.
Kahaukani Conversations is made possible with support from:
Atherton Family Foundation
Island Insurance
