Chief of War: The Sacred Niu Grove | Talk Story Ep. 8

Pa‘a Sibbett sits down with Mainei Kinimaka to discuss Episode 8: The Sacred Niu Grove. Their talk story explores Mainei’s path into acting, the importance of creating space for Hawai‘i and Pasifika voices, and the kuleana of telling stories with care. They reflect on the weight of portraying historical trauma, the responsibility of nurturing talent, and the power of story to shift perceptions and build community.

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0:00 Intro
0:43 Welina
1:05 Spoiler Alert
1:30 Getting Into Acting
2:46 Jason Seeing Something in People
3:45 What Was the Audition Process Like?
4:52 Reading for Ka‘ahumanu's Part
5:49 Increasing Access to the Industry
6:34 Kōkua for Jason Momoa
9:56 The Only Thing That Matters is the Story
10:53 Learning All the Aspects of Production
13:19 Caring for the Actors and Performances
13:51 Heke and Nahi
15:00 Heke Was Created for the Show
16:15 Heke and the Connection to Once Were Warriors
17:36 The Heaviness of Olowalu
19:53 Pasifika People and Trauma
21:35 Hard To Watch at Home
22:34 Changing the Perceptions of the World
26:02 Ka‘iana and Kamehameha
27:08 Siua Ikale‘o
29:05 Siua's Guitar Audition
31:34 Siua's Influence on the Writers
32:51 Be Yourself in the Audition Process
36:41 ICAN and Hawai‘i Talent
38:14 Putting in the Work
40:43 The Sacred Grove and Relationships
46:05 Keala and ‘Ōpūnui
47:23 Cliff Curtis, Fight Scenes, Ali‘i Minor
49:08 Finding Out
50:44 Not Historically Accurate
53:34 Iwi
55:23 Kalanikūpule and Brandon Finn
1:00:05 Temeura Morrison and Brandon
1:01:14 A Last Difficult Scene
1:06:18 Not All Warrior Culture, A Nurturer of Life
1:07:49 Outro

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Dive deeper into more episodes of Hu‘e Kaona: Chief of War Talk Story Sessions at https://www.kanaeokana.net/chiefofwar

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Find learning resources and links at https://kanaeokana.net/chiefofwar
Learn more about the Hawai‘i Film Alliance: https://hawaiifilmalliance.org/