Tinā
From Miki Magasiva (SIFF 2024’s Indigenous anthology film We Are Still Here) comes this heartfelt and tuneful underdog story about Mareta, a grieving Samoan teacher who finds a new lease on life and connection to community when she forms a student choir at a wealthy school.
Tickets
Select showtime for pricing and tickets.
Sunday, May 18, 2025
- Limited Availability
- On Standby
- Matinee
Monday, May 19, 2025
- Limited Availability
- On Standby
- Matinee
After suddenly losing her daughter in the earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, choir-teacher Mareta becomes so lost in her grief she pushes away everyone in her community that wants to help her. When financial circumstances finally provoke her to begrudgingly seek a substitute teacher job at a wealthy private school, Mareta slowly begins to process her grief through a choir program she establishes. She soon realizes that her new students, who are struggling under the weight of expectations at their elite school, are benefiting from the choir to work through their own problems as well. This solo feature debut from Miki Magasiva (SIFF 2024’s We Are Still Here) is a sorrowful reflection on grief, love, and how we heal from loss with the help of the communities we build around us. It brings together the Samoan tradition of passing down stories through song and the dry humor we come to expect from New Zealand films, providing brief respites from a deeply emotional story. Tinā, Samoan for mother, won the Best Narrative Audience Award at the 2025 Palm Springs International Film Festival and will be just as much of a crowdpleaser for Seattle audiences.
—Mackenzie Wardlow
- Director: Miki Magasiva (Samoan)
- Principal Cast: Anapela Polataivao, Antonia Robinson, Beulah Koale, Dalip Sondhi, Nicole Whippy
- Country: Aotearoa New Zealand
- Year: 2024
- Running Time: 124 min.
- Producer: Dan Higgins, Miki Magasiva, Mario Gaoa
- Screenplay: Miki Magasiva
- Cinematographers: Andrew McGeorge
- Editors: Luke Haigh
- Music: Igelese Ete, Sebastian Pan
- Website: Official Film Website
- Awards: Palm Springs International Film Festival 2025 (Audience Award: Best Narrative)
- Filmography: Debut Feature Film
- Language: English
- Format: DCP
- International Sales: Ticket to Ride