Becs Arahanga’s 2016 short film, “Laundry,” screened at the New Zealand International Film Festival. She recently completed filming on her next project, “Hinekura.”

Amberley Jo Aumua’s first short film, “Waiting,” won the Jury Prize for Best Film at the New Zealand International Film Festival and screened in competition at TIFF. Her recent short “Moa Ma Le Pinko” was created as part of the Native Slam film challenge for Māoriland Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award.

Matasila Freshwater’s animated short film “Shmeat” was a New Zealand International Film Festival Official Selection for New Zealand’s Best Short Film.

Dianna Fuemana won the Script to Screen Writers Internship with Killer Films. Her first short film, “Sunday Fun Day,” won the Sun Jury Prize at the Imaginative Film Media Arts Festival in Toronto.

An award-winning playwright, Mïria George’s work has toured New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “Vai” is her film directorial debut.

‘Ofa Guttenbeil-Likiliki is a women’s rights activist, director, writer, and producer. She directed the short films “Pink Hibiscus” and “The Black Pen.”

Marina Alofagia McCartney wrote and directed the short “Milk & Honey,” which was selected as a finalist for the inaugural New Zealand International Film Festival’s Best Short Film Competition. She also co-directed the documentary “Ser un ser humano” and directed “Granada,” a short film.

Nicole Whippy is an actress and director. “Vai” is her feature directorial debut.

“Vai” will premiere at the 2019 SXSW Film Festival on March 8. It is co-directed by Matasila Freshwater.

W&H: Describe the film for us in your own words.

DF: A story about generational wealth, driven by women who are empowered by culture.

NW: A film about female empowerment that spans the breadth of the Pacific, telling the story of one woman’s life in eight separate moments from the perspective of eight different Pacific Island cultures.

MAM: Vai, which in its many versions throughout Oceania means water, is used as a connector throughout the film, both literal and metaphorical, to explore the empowerment of the Oceanic female through our Oceanic cultures.

MG: The complex realities of one woman from the Pacific Ocean.

OGL: A story about love, pain, fear, frustrations, dreams, activism, self-determination, nurturing relationships, sexual identity, climate change, cultural empowerment, traditional rituals, and female solidarity — all rolled into the story of Vai, a Pacific island girl and her transition into womanhood.

BA: A merging of cultures and stories from around the Pacific.

AJA: Stories from the Pacific of our grandmothers, mothers, aunties, sisters, and daughters.

W&H: What drew you to this story?

DF: The face and voices of Polynesian women are unseen in the world of live action film. It was an opportunity to give rise to those faces and voices within our community.

NW: We didn’t know what the story was when we signed on, but we did know about the project parameters. One that drew me was being able to collaborate and create a story with eight other strong Pacific female voices including my older sister, [co-writer] Sharon Whippy.

MAM: “Vai” gave us an opportunity to visually explore a different type of Pacific woman, a much-needed representation that counters the historical and current imagined construction of the exoticized Pacific female.

MG: The opportunity to create and collaborate with female filmmakers from Oceania — to tell stories of Indigenous women by Indigenous women.

OGL: A risk-taking creative process opening up the world of filmmaking to the underrepresented writer and director: a woman, a Pacific Island woman!

BA: The female narrative and the opportunity to collaborate with other women.

AJA: Seeing our Pacifica people on-screen, being in control of our narrative, and collaborating with Pacifica women.

W&H: What do you want people to think about when they are leaving the theater?

DF: How does my own culture elevate my existence in this lifetime?

NW: I want them to really see the Pacific female of today. Open their eyes and see her in some of her many truths. Our grandmothers, mothers, daughters. See all of us and have a clearer insight on why we might be like we are in this lifetime. I also want them to enjoy the stories. They are unique and beautifully woven together.

MAM: Our Oceanic cultures are not an impediment to our existence, but the very thing that empowers us mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

MG: That audiences would be inspired to know more about the lives and stories of Pacific and Indigenous women in the world around them.

OGL: For a movie that was shot in eight different countries with a one day-shoot in each country-location, written, directed, and produced by women, that was well worth the money spent to watch the film. #ThatWasKickAss

BA: I want them to have a slightly deeper understanding and respect for the stories of the different cultures and people around them.

W&H: What was the biggest challenge in making the film?

DF: The technical parameters: one day to rehearse, one day to shoot. One continuous 10-minute shot to tell the story, where possible.

NW: The 10-minute one take we had to achieve with a seven-year-old Fijian actress who I had just met three weeks before at casting, leading the action all day in the intense heat. We were given one day to rehearse with all the cast on the location and one day to shoot it all within children’s on-set hours! Needless to say, [Mereani Tuimatanisiga], my actress, was phenomenal.

MAM: The technical parameters — one day to rehearse, one day to shoot, one continuous 10-minute shot to tell the story — was the biggest challenge, but it was also incredibly rewarding once I realized that we had our take!

MG: The framework of the film itself — shooting in one day, with only one day to rehearse — was definitely the most challenging form in which to capture a story. Working within the glory and the constraints of natural light. In the Cook Islands we were literally racing a setting sun for one more take.

OGL: Making sure that, as part of a collective of writer-directors, the story I was creating as an individual writer was in sync with all the other stories being created around my story.

BA: Time. We only had a small window of time, — one day to rehearse, one day to shoot — to get this film shot. The challenge was awesome though.

AJA: The time constraints of a film production like this, from pre to post production. However, it was very rewarding what we all accomplished in such a small time-frame, especially with the love and support of each other.

W&H: How did you get your film funded? Share some insights into how you got the film made.

All: Movies get government financing most of the time in New Zealand.

W&H: What inspired you to become a filmmaker?

NW: My producers Kerry Warkia and Kiel McNaughton.

MG: [The desire to] tell stories about the world that I come from — a world still yet to be truly seen in cinema.

OGL: I have always been fascinated by how effective the medium of film can portray a story to the viewer and leave the viewer captivated for a fixed period time. I am a fan of auteurship and how much autonomy the director has in crafting the film. I am also a storyteller. I tell stories in whatever context or space I’m in to relay the key messages that I want to relay. With these two things combined, it was only natural that I was drawn to and ventured into filmmaking.

BA: The stories are what inspire me. Telling our stories through our own lens is exciting to me.

AJA: My family. My community. Everything.

W&H: What’s the best and worst advice you’ve received?

DF: Best: Keep your eyes on the prize! Worst: On parenthood: The first 30 years are always the hardest! FML.

NW: Worst: That other people’s stories and voices were more important that my own. [This was also the best advice] because that’s what drove me to start speaking up.

MAM: Best: You don’t have to be ruthless to get ahead. Worst: Sometimes you have to be ruthless to get ahead.

MG: Best: Surround yourself with those you trust. Bad advice is plentiful — I don’t hold on to it. Tune out and hold on to your vision.

OGL: Best: Never make assumptions. Always hold more than one interpretation of any given situation. Worst: Don’t label yourself as a feminist or an activist, you’ll turn people off!

BA: The best: Our unique voice and point of view is what the world needs more of — that was an empowering and validating perspective. Also that there isn’t just one way to get films made — create your own way and just do it. Worst advice? I’m not sure. There seems to be plenty of different perspectives out there that don’t resonate with me. I think it’s more the people you surround yourself with — find your tribe.

AJA: Best: You are enough and your voice is important. Speak up!

W&H: What advice do you have for other female directors?

DF: Trust your gut. Stand behind yourself. Your life deserves to be your greatest film, too. Support your vision and yourself.

NW: Surround yourself with other women you trust in key roles on your projects so that you get what you need to make the magic happen.

MAM: When our perspectives and worldviews continue to be marginalized on and behind the big screen, it is essential we stand together and demand that narratives and stories told by us become the norm. Support each other and allow other female directors to grow alongside you rather than under you.

MG: Pursue your own way of leading, of being creative. You don’t need to perpetuate what’s come before you.

OGL: Believe in yourself and your limitless possibilities. #SmashThatGlassCeiling

BA: Your voice is what the world needs more of. Be brave, be unapologetic, and get your story out there.

W&H: Name your favorite woman-directed film and why.

DF: “O Tamaiti” By Sima Urale. Urale portrayed the essence and intimacy of a Samoan family without showing the faces of the parents who weren’t doing such a great job as parents. I never realized “sound” was an art form within film until I saw a moment in “O Tamaiti” where a mouth gives an evil smile that is propelled by the “sound” of the lips curling. Urale showed me that filmmaking was painting a real-life portrait, using your own senses as the brush.

NW: “Magralen” directed by Maryam Zarei, an Iranian/Canadian co-production. I just saw it in the Short Films Generation Kplus section at the Berlinale Film Festival. [It’s] breathtaking, as in I literally stopped breathing watching this beautiful study of human behavior set in a scrap yard.

MAM: “O Tamaiti” by Sima Urale. This award-winning short film was the first film written and directed by a Samoan woman. Not only is it aesthetically beautiful, but Urale showed a budding Oceanic female writer-director like me what was possible.

MG: Without a doubt, Sima Urale’s beautiful short film “O Tamaiti.” The style and grace of her filmmaking is a privilege.

OGL: Feature film: Niki Caro’s film adaptation of Witi Ihimaera’s “Whale Rider” for all the interpretations it represents for women and young girls. I mean this came way before Disney’s “Moana.” In “Whale Rider,” we enter the life of a young Maori girl who is determined to take on a leadership role by riding a whale and leading her tribe, despite being told that chiefly titles are only reserved for men. Caro’s directorial work with lead actress Keisha Castle-Hughes was awesome.

I have mad respect for the following female film directors, some for their unique styles and others for their activist voices: Sima Urale, Ava DuVernay, Agnès Varda, and Julie Dash. All the directors of “Vai” who did kick-ass work directing their stories with a one-day rehearsal and one-day shoot! I’m sure there are a few more I have forgotten but those are the ones that come to my mind immediately.

BA: There are so many, but I guess “The Piano” by Jane Campion. It’s a masterpiece in filmmaking and storytelling. Debra Granik’s “Leave No Trace,” which has interesting characters and is told from different perspectives with incredible performances. The best documentary I have seen would have to be “Mankiller,” directed by Valerie Red-Horse, [which is an] incredible story about Wilma Mankiller, the first principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation.

W&H: It’s been a little over a year since the reckoning in Hollywood and the global film industry began. What differences have you noticed since the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements launched?

NW: I come from an acting background, and I can feel how there is a new demand of respect on set. Especially for us women. The boys club has stopped. Comments that people got away with five years ago no longer have a place in our industry. It’s all about the work now.

OGL: I’m not really sure, because I live miles and miles of ocean away from Hollywood, so I wouldn’t begin to know what has happened since the #MeToo and #TimesUp movement campaigns. I just hope that whatever initiatives that have come out of these movements that support more women-led roles in the film industry are not just a phase.

That real commitment and hard cash are put towards progressing women through the ranks, because at the end of the day it’s a question about equity and equitable access. It’s not just about equality anymore, we need to look at de facto equality through a different lens and scale-up efforts in this area.

BA: People are wanting to see a more diverse voice on screen, and these movements are [helping] people, and specifically women and other marginalized groups, have better opportunities to get their stories made.