Libby Hakaraiashe/her

Libby’s talent and dedication has been recognized worldwide with her short films being screened internationally. She has produced two feature films, Cousins (2021) and Kōkā (2024), as well as over 15 short films, along with co-producing The NATIVE Slam event for the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival, an international Indigenous film challenge which resulted in 21 films. 

In 2014, Libby led the establishment of the Māoriland Film Festival in her tribal home of Ōtaki. In 2016 she created the Māoriland Center of Excellence in Film and Creative Arts and in 2018 she was awarded the Women in Film and Television Entrepreneur Award. Libby was given the honour of Officer of the Order of New Zealand for her outstanding services to media and film in 2023, and she was selected for the 2024 Sundance Merata Mita Fellowship. Libby has a slate of film projects in development, including her highly anticipated directorial debut feature film.