KŌRERO TOI | ISSUE TEN | ISOLATION Written by Skye Lunson-Storey (they/them) | Whakatōhea, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Tūwharetoa | @uku_rangi | Arts, Culture, and Te Ao Māori Editor Art has the ability to become a bridge between people and the environments they inhabit. Through processes of colonisation, urbanisation, and extraction, we have increasingly become disconnected from our environment. Isolated from the whenua that sustains us. This disconnection is not only physical,

NEWS | ISSUE TEN | ISOLATION Written by Liam Hansen (they/them) | @liamhanse.n | Associate Editor Election campaigns are generally opportunities for parties to blue-sky, spelling out each of their priorities, policies, and prayers for the election long before they’re held accountable for anything they promised on the trail. The consequences of this have already been felt in 2026, as Luxon's comfort in the non-menacing talkback booth of Mike Hosking gave him the opportunity t

EDITORIAL | ISSUE TEN | ISOLATION Written by Tashi Donnelly (she/her) | @tashi_rd | Editor When I chose this issue’s theme, I knew it would be popular. With Covid-19 lockdowns only five short years behind us and the now decades-long hand-wringing over social media addiction, I knew that the university students of today would have a lot to say about isolation. However, this theme has proven to be so popular that, in a frenzy of excitement, I accepted more articles than I shoul

WEB EXCLUSIVE | REVIEW | NZIFF This is part of a series of roundtable discussions and extended dialogues conducted by Ricky Lai (@rickthelai), Trevor Pronoso (@CleverGurl), Madeline Smith (@prime4illusion), and Caeden Tipler (@ctipler) on films that have premiered at NZIFF 2026. Minotaur (2026) dir. Andzrej Zvyagintsev France/Latvia/Germany, 135 mins The following exchange is between Ricky and Madeline on Andzrej Zvyagintsev's latest film, Minotaur. Ricky: Early on in Minota

WEB EXCLUSIVE | REVIEW | NZIFF This is part of a series of roundtable discussions and extended dialogues conducted by Ricky Lai (@rickthelai), Trevor Pronoso (@CleverGurl), Madeline Smith (@prime4illusion), and Caeden Tipler (@ctipler) on films that have premiered at NZIFF 2026. The History of Concrete (2026) dir. John Wilson USA, 101 mins The following exchange is between Ricky and Madeline on John Wilson's latest film, The History of Concrete. Ricky: Overheard from an audi

WEB EXCLUSIVE | REVIEW | NZIFF Written by Trevor Pronoso | Letterboxd: @CleverGurl | Instagram: @trev.pro | Contributing Writer Kiri and Lou Go Raaa! (2026) dir. Harry Sinclair, Antony Elworthy Aotearoa New Zealand, 61 mins I think back to the previous animated film screening I attended, Footrot Flats: The Dog's Tail Tale, and wonder if such a dedicatedly nostalgic (older) audience for that film will be the case for Kiri and Lou 40 years from now. Though Footrot Flats is ma

WEB EXCLUSIVE | REVIEW | NZIFF This is part of a series of roundtable discussions and extended dialogues conducted by Ricky Lai (@rickthelai), Trevor Pronoso (@CleverGurl), Madeline Smith (@prime4illusion), and Caeden Tipler (@ctipler) on films that have premiered at NZIFF 2026. The Ice Tower (2025) dir. Lucile Hadžihalilović France, 117 mins The following exchange is between Ricky and Trevor on Lucile Hadžihalilović's latest film, The Ice Tower. Ricky: Bear with me here. In

WEB EXCLUSIVE | REVIEW | NZIFF Written by Trevor Pronoso | Letterboxd: @CleverGurl | Instagram: @trev.pro | Contributing Writer Footrot Flats: The Dog's Tail Tale (1986) dir. Murray Ball Aotearoa New Zealand / Australia, 68 mins Aggressively kiwi. I began to realise, at least since last year's NZIFF, that 4K restorations of old movies are much rarer and more special than catching the latest coming-of-age film (the latter are also more likely to hit streaming services than r

WEB EXCLUSIVE | REVIEW | NZIFF Written by Trevor Pronoso | Letterboxd: @CleverGurl | Instagram: @trev.pro | Contributing Writer Phantom Beirut (1998) dir. Ghassan Salhab France / Lebanon, 117 mins Possibly my favourite film I've seen in the festival thus far. I can't help but identify with every single sentiment Beirut Phantom represents: the exasperated love and conjugal dissatisfaction with the place you were born in and grew up. My parents asked me on my birthday a few w

WEB EXCLUSIVE | REVIEW | NZIFF This is part of a series of roundtable discussions and extended dialogues conducted by Ricky Lai (@rickthelai), Trevor Pronoso (@CleverGurl), Madeline Smith (@prime4illusion), and Caeden Tipler (@ctipler) on films that have premiered at NZIFF 2026. Dao (2026) dir. Alain Gomis France / Guinea-Bissau / Senegal, 185 mins The following exchange is between Ricky and Trevor on Alan Gomis' latest film, Dao. Trevor: If you told me this was a three-hour