kekahi wahi, a grassroots film initiative from Hawaiʻi instigated by filmmaker Sancia Miala Shiba Nash and artist Drew K. Broderick in 2020, presents two programs, titled p3: arrivals and p4: lipo, from their open-ended screening series i nā ki‘i ma mua, nā ki‘i ma hope, featuring moving-image works from Oceania and Asia Pacific. Much like a lei or garland, this guest-curated double bill strings together works by an intergenerational group of artists and filmmakers who offer glimpses into ongoing archipelagic realities. Collaborators include Nā Maka o ka ʻĀina (Joan Lander and Puhipau), Haʻaheo Auwae-Dekker, Sean Connelly, Léuli Eshrāghi, KEANAHALA, Tiare Ribeaux, Dan Taulapapa McMullin, e-nico, Jakob Soto, Noah Keone Viernes, kekahi wahi, Christopher Makoto Yogi and Vincent Bercasio with Madelyn Biven & Bradley Capello.
In acknowledgement of the ways in which filmmakers and artists are guided simultaneously by their pasts and futures, the title of the series expands on the oft-quoted ʻōlelo no‘eau (Hawaiian proverb) “I ka wā ma mua, ka wā ma hope.” Commenting succinctly on this saying, Native Hawaiian educator and community leader Lilikalā Kameʻeleihiwa writes in Native Land and Foreign Desires: Pehea Lā E Pono Ai? (1992), “The Hawaiian stands firmly in the present, with [their] back to the future, and [their] eyes fixed upon the past, seeking historical answers for present-day dilemmas.” Shifting the focus from ka wā (epoch, era, time, space) to nā ki‘i (images, likenesses, idols, petroglyphs) encourages unexpected connections across media formats, practices, movements, and generations. A conversation between participating filmmakers in attendance will follow each program.
Program runtime approx. 110 min.