Matewa Media is a New Zealand production company that dubs

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

animated films into the

Māori language Māori (; endonym: 'the Māori language', commonly shortened to ) is an Eastern Polynesian languages, Eastern Polynesian language and the language of the Māori people, the indigenous population of mainland New Zealand. The southernmost membe ...

Productions

''Moana Reo Māori'' (2017)

Matewa Media was formed by

Tweedie Waititi Mateheke "Tweedie" Waititi (born ) is a New Zealand film director and producer. The whāngai sister of Taika Waititi, she is best known for her work co-directing production company Matewa Media, which since 2016 has produced Māori language ve ...

and

Chelsea Winstanley Chelsea Jane Winstanley (born 30 January 1976) is a New Zealand film producer. She produces short films and documentaries which celebrate Indigenous peoples. She also produced the films ''What We Do in the Shadows'' and ''Jojo Rabbit''. Career ...

in 2017 after seeing how popular the 2016 film ''Moana'' was with Winstanley's children. With the help of Waititi's cousin and Winstanley's husband

Taika Waititi Taika David Cohen (born 16 August 1975), known professionally as Taika Waititi ( ), is a New Zealand filmmaker, actor, and comedian. Known for quirky comedy films and expanding his career as a voice actor and producer on numerous projects, he ...

, who wrote the initial screenplay of ''Moana'' and was at the time working on '' Thor: Ragnarok'', they secured the dubbing rights from Disney. They received funding from Disney,

Air New Zealand Air New Zealand Limited () is the flag carrier of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 20 domestic and 28 international destinations in 18 countries, primarily within the Pacific Rim. The airline h ...

, and

Te Māngai Pāho Te Māngai Pāho (the Māori Broadcast Funding Agency) is the New Zealand Crown entity responsible for the promotion of the Māori language and Māori culture by providing funding for Māori-language programming on radio and television. In 19 ...

who gave $160,000. It was announced in June 2017, with high school student Jaedyn Randell and '' Te Kāea'' newsreader Piripi Taylor cast as the lead roles of Moana and Maui respectively, while

Rachel House Rachel Jessica Te Ao Maarama House (born 20 October 1971) is a New Zealand actress and director. She is best known for her roles in the films of Taika Waititi. She has received numerous accolades including an Arts Laureate, NZ Order of Mer ...

Temuera Morrison Temuera Derek Morrison (born 26 December 1960) is a New Zealand actor who first gained recognition in his home country for playing Dr. Hone Ropata on the soap opera ''Shortland Street''. He garnered critical acclaim for starring as Jake "The M ...

, and

Jemaine Clement Jemaine Atea Mahana Clement (born 10 January 1974) is a New Zealand actor, comedian, musician, and filmmaker. He has released several albums with Bret McKenzie as the musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords, and created a comedy TV series t ...

reprised their roles from the English version. A total of 250 people auditioned for the role of Moana. House also served as the performance director, while

Rob Ruha Rob Ruha (born 1980), is a New Zealand musician from Wharekahika, Gisborne District. He debuted as a solo musician in 2013, and is known for his singles sung in te Reo Māori, including "Kalega" (2017), "Ka Mānu" (2019), " 35" with Ka Hao (202 ...

was the musical director. The film premiered on 11 September 2017, during

Te Wiki o te Reo Māori () is a government-sponsored initiative intended to encourage New Zealanders to promote the use of the Māori language which is an official language of the country. Māori Language Week is part of a broader movement to revive the Māori langu ...

. It was screened for free in thirty cinemas around the country, with no English subtitles. The soundtrack was released in November 2017, and the film launched on the

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

streaming service on 26 June 2020.

''The Lion King Reo Māori'' and ''Frozen Reo Māori'' (2022)

Māori dubs of the 1994 film ''The Lion King'' and the 2013 film ''Frozen'' were announced in July 2021, with Matewa Media getting $500,000 in funding from

NZ On Air NZ On Air (NZOA; ), formally the Broadcasting Commission, is an Crown entity, autonomous Crown entity and commission of the New Zealand Government responsible for providing funding for broadcasting and creative works. The commission operates l ...

to produce them in December 2021. The cast of ''The Lion King Reo Māori'' was announced in May 2022, with Mataara Stokes as

Simba Simba is a fictional character in Walt Disney Animation Studios, Disney's ''The Lion King (franchise), The Lion King ''franchise. First appearing as a cub in ''The Lion King'' (1994), the character flees his homeland when his father, Mufasa, is ...

, Arihia Cassidy as

Nala Nala () is a legendary king of ancient Nishadha kingdom and the central protagonist of the '' Nalopakhyana'', a sub-narrative within the Indian epic '' Mahabharata'', found in its third book, '' Vana Parva'' (Book of the Forest). He is renown ...

, Piripi Taylor as Mufasa, Matu Ngaropo as

Scar A scar (or scar tissue) is an area of fibrosis, fibrous tissue that replaces normal skin after an injury. Scars result from the biological process of wound repair in the skin, as well as in other Organ (anatomy), organs, and biological tissue, t ...

, and Matai Rae and Justin Rogers as

Timon and Pumbaa Timon and Pumbaa are an animated meerkat and warthog duo introduced in Disney's 1994 animated feature film ''The Lion King'' and its franchise. Timon was played through his many appearances by Nathan Lane (in all three films and early episodes ...

respectively. Each group of animals speak their own Māori dialect from five different

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

; the lions are

Waikato Tainui Waikato Tainui, Waikato or Tainui is a group of Māori ''iwi'' based in the Waikato Region, in the western central region of New Zealand's North Island. It is part of the larger Tainui confederation of Polynesian settlers who arrived to New Zeal ...

, the hyenas are

Ngāti Kahungunu Ngāti Kahungunu is a Māori iwi (tribe) located along the eastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The iwi is traditionally centred in the Hawke's Bay and Wairārapa regions. The Kahungunu iwi also comprises 86 hapū (sub-tribes ...

, Timon and Pumbaa are

Te Tai Tokerau Māori Te Tai Tokerau Māori are a group of Māori ''iwi'' (tribes) based on the Northland Peninsula of New Zealand's North Island. It includes the far northern Muriwhenua ''iwi'' (tribes) of Te Aupōuri, Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Kurī, Te Pātū, Te Raraw ...

, Zazu is

Taranaki Taranaki is a regions of New Zealand, region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano Mount Taranaki, Taranaki Maunga, formerly known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the ...

, and Rafiki is

Ngāi Tūhoe Ngāi Tūhoe (), often known simply as Tūhoe, is a Māori people, Māori iwi (tribe) of New Zealand. It takes its name from an ancestral figure, Tūhoe-pōtiki. ''Tūhoe'' is a Māori-language word meaning 'steep' or 'high noon'. Tūhoe people a ...

. Matewa Media appealed directly to

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

for permission to dub his version of "

Can You Feel the Love Tonight "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" is a song from Disney's 1994 animated feature film ''The Lion King'' composed by English musician Elton John with lyrics by Tim Rice. Released as a single in May 1994, the song was a hit in the UK, peaking at nu ...

" in the closing credits, becoming the first foreign version of the film to do so.

Stan Walker Stan Walker (born 23 October 1990) is an Australian New Zealand singer, actor, and television personality. In 2009, Walker was the winner of the seventh season of ''Australian Idol''. He subsequently signed a recording contract with Sony Mus ...

performed the cover. The film released on 21 June 2022, with the premiere attended by the

Māori King Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

Tūheitia Paki Tūheitia Pōtatau Te Wherowhero VII GCCT KStJ KCLJ (born Tūheitia Paki; 21 April 1955 – 30 August 2024), crowned as Kīngi Tūheitia, reigned as the Māori King from 2006 until his death in 2024. He was the eldest son of the previous Mā ...

. The cast of ''Frozen Reo Māori'' was announced in September 2022, with Jaedyn Randell as

Anna Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna of East Anglia, King (died c.654) * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th c ...

, Awhimai Fraser as Elsa, Kawiti Waetford as

Kristoff Kristoff is a version of Kristopher (Scandinavian, Greek): respelling of Christopher. People * Kristoff St. John (1966-2019), American actor. * Ivan Kristoff (born 1968), aviator, rescue worker, and rope access expert * Kristoff Raczyñski (bo ...

, James Tito as Hans, and

Pere Wihongi Pere Te Ruru o te Ramana Wihongi (born ), sometimes known mononymously as PERE, is a New Zealand musician, voice actor, choreographer, and kapa haka performer. She is part of the award-winning music groups Maimoa and Te Kākano. Early life Wiho ...

Olaf Olaf or Olav (, , or differences between General American and Received Pronunciation, British ; ) is a Dutch, Polish, Scandinavian and German given name. It is presumably of Proto-Norse origin, reconstructed as ''*Anu-laibaz'', from ''anu'' "ances ...

. Due to the colder climate, the film is in the dialect of

Ngāi Tahu Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori people, Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim, New Zealand, Blenhe ...

. The film premiered on 26 October 2022. Both films launched on Disney+ in November 2022.

''Coco Reo Māori'' (2023)

At the premiere of ''Frozen Reo Māori'', Waititi announced that the 2021 film ''

Encanto ''Encanto'' is a 2021 American animated Musical film, musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It was directed by Jared Bush and Byron Howard, co-directed by Charise Castro Smith, and ...

'' and the 2017 film ''Coco'' were next. Matewa Media secured another $500,000 in funding from NZ On Air to produce them in December 2022, and the release of ''Coco Reo Māori'' was set for

Matariki In Māori culture, Matariki is the Pleiades star cluster and a celebration of its first rising in late June or early July. The rising marks the beginning of the new year in the Māori lunar calendar. Historically, Matariki was usually celebr ...

2023. The cast was announced on 9 June 2023, with Mānuera Mānihera as Miguel,

Troy Kingi Troy Kingi (born 1984) is a New Zealand musician and actor from Northland, first receiving media attention when he appeared in the 2013 film '' Mt. Zion''. Kingi is a multi-instrumentalist, is known for his 10/10/10 project: the plan to release ...

as Héctor, Justin Rogers as Ernesto de la Cruz, Naomi Herewini-Houia as Mamá Imelda, Kuini Moehau-Reedy as Abuelita, and

as Mamá Coco. The characters speak in the

Ngāti Porou Ngāti Porou is a Māori iwi traditionally located in the East Cape and Gisborne regions of the North Island of New Zealand. It has the second-largest affiliation of any iwi, behind Ngāpuhi, with an estimated 102,480 people according to the ...

dialect due to the iwi having many descendants of Spanish trader

Manuel José Manuel José de Jesus Silva ComM (born 9 April 1946), simply known as Manuel José (), is a Portuguese football manager. Some of the teams he has coached include Vitória de Guimarães, Sporting CP, Sporting de Braga, Boavista, Benfica, Al ...

. Previous dubs had gone through post-production in America, but for ''Coco Reo Māori'' this was done at

Park Road Post Park Road Post Production is an international film and television post-production facility located in Miramar, a suburb of Wellington, New Zealand. Built out of the state-owned National Film Unit (NFU), the new facility opened upon completion ...

in Wellington.

''Encanto Reo Māori'' (2024)

The Māori dub of ''Encanto'' was formally announced in May 2023. The cast was announced on 5 August 2024, with Te Waimarie Ngatai-Callaghan as

Mirabel Mirabel, Mirabelle or Mirabell may refer to: *Mirabel (name), a female given name Places Austria *Mirabell Palace, in Salzburg Canada *Mirabel, Quebec, a city northwest of Montreal *Montréal–Mirabel International Airport in Quebec *Mirabel ( ...

, Hinetu Dell as Abuela, Poroaki Merrit-McDonald as

Bruno Bruno may refer to: People and fictional characters * Bruno (name), including lists of people and fictional characters with either the given name or surname * Bruno, Duke of Saxony (died 880) * Bruno the Great (925–965), Archbishop of Cologn ...

, Anahera Taare as

Isabela Isabela may refer to: People with the given name * Isabela Boscov, Brazilian film critic * Isabela Corona (1913–1993), Mexican actress * Isabela Garcia (born 1967), Brazilian actress * Isabela Moraes (born 1980), Brazilian synchronized swimmer ...

, Marcia Hopa as Luisa's speaking voice, and Awatea Wihongi as Luisa's singing voice. The film will release on 12 September.

''Moana 2 Reo Māori'' (2024)

On 28 November 2024, the Māori dub of ''Moana 2'' released in New Zealand concurrently with the English language version. The cast of the first film returned, with new characters being voiced by Arihia Cassidy, Rutene Spooner and Nepia Takuira-Mita.

References

{{reflist Dubbing studios New Zealand companies established in 2017 Mass media companies established in 2017 Mass media companies of New Zealand Māori-language mass media Disney animation