Ranginui: Call of the Ice

What is revealed depends on how closely you are willing to look.

Antarctica in winter is one of the most extreme places on Earth: isolated, locked in darkness, and -50°C. Māori astronomer Rangi Matamua and language expert Mataia Keepa enter this frozen world, where science and Indigenous knowledge meet in real time. Rangi carries a personal promise to honour his grandfather’s dying wish and share Māori starlore beyond Aotearoa. When unexpected snowstorms roll in, they are forced to stay longer than planned, cut off inside a continent that continues to shift and close in around them. Through auroras, storms, first sunrise and shifting ice, they learn to read a living landscape most will never witness.

This film won Best New Zealand Cinematography category at the Doc Edge Awards 2026.

Made with the support of Te Māngai Pāho, TVNZ and RNZ.