In a traditional tribal society in the South Pacific, a young girl, Wawa, falls in love with her chief’s grandson, Dain. When an inter-tribal war escalates, Wawa is unknowingly betrothed as part of a peace deal. The young lovers run away, refusing her arranged fate. They must choose between their hearts and the future of the tribe, while the villagers must wrestle with preserving their traditional culture and adapting it to the increasing outside demands for individual freedom.
On the island of Tanna, a part of Vanuatu, an archipelago in Melanesia, strange rites are enacted and time passes slowly while the inhabitants await the return of the mysterious John.
From the remote, islands of Vanuatu, comes an extremely unique and rarely seen tradition, water music.
4 young women , goaded one minute and encouraged the next by an androgynous MC , take over a night club to tell the story of Sonia and Max . Sonia, the group's lead singer is trapped in an abusive relationship with Max. Through song and dramatic reconstruction of moments in their life, she attempts to find freedom. Originally a very popular stage production, Laef I Swit is Vanuatu's first full length film musical. Performed by members of Wan Smolbag Theatre, the only professional theatre and filmmaking troupe in Melanesia.
Life in Vanuatu isn't all sea, sun and palm trees. For Timothy and his family life is hard. His daughter Betty is out of school because he can't pay her school fees. His wife works as a house girl and his son hangs around with his friends smoking dope, like many other unemployed, young men. Timothy's only hope is the political party he supports, and when the man Timothy has collected votes for becomes a Minister, Timothy dreams he will get a job and earn the money to send Betty back into school. But he is not the only supporter looking for work. And to get the job he wants he has to do things that make him question the whole system. Yumi Go Kale is the first feature made entirely by Wan Smolbag's cast and crew.
If you had never heard of an airplane, would you think it was a miracle when one arrived? Waiting for John tells the story of America's incredible impact on a remote island in the South Pacific and the birth of an extraordinary religion, the John Frum Movement, considered the last surviving cargo cult. We follow the John Frum believers today as they struggle to preserve a culture in danger of being lost to the modern world.
Three mythical stories from the Republic of Vanuatu, an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean, concerning the origin of humans, why pigs walk on all fours, and why a volcano sits where it does.