Director: Tusi Tamasese

Producer: Catherine Fitzgerald

Cinematographer: Leon Narbey

Running Time: 110 minutes

Year of Production:2011

Screened on original 35mm film print

The Orator (O Le Tulafale) is a contemporary drama about courage, forgiveness and love. Small in stature and humble, Saili lives a simple life with his beloved wife and daughter in an isolated, traditional village in the islands of Samoa. Forced to protect his land and family, Saili must face his fears and seek the right to speak up for those he loves.

Tusi Tamasese explains, “I think the challenge as a director, is to establish a style of filmmaking that is derived from culture and customs of Samoa and that eqaully tells a Pacific Island story that the whole cinema world can understand and appreciate . Hopefully The Orator will pave the way for that. I believe that in all of us there is a 'dwarf' a metaphor for things that hold us back. This could be our culture, our jobs, lack of confidence or the lack of courage.”

The Orator is shot on location on the island of Upolu, Samoa.

Sundance Film Festival (2012), Spotlight Section

Venice International Film Festival (2011), Special Jury Mention

Academy Award Nomination (2012), Best Foreign Film

Writer / Director Tusi Tamasese is a prize winning graduate of the International Institute of Modern Letters at Victoria University of Wellington, the NZ Film School and the University of Waikato.

Tamasese’s earlier work includes Va Tapuia – Sacred Spaces (2009) a 15 minute short film which premiered at the 2010 NZ International Film Festival and been selected to screen at the Hawaii, ImagiNative; Show me Shorts, Clermont Ferrand, Oberhausen and All Roads Film Festivals. This short film forged the team which later formed the backbone of the crew for The Orator – O Le Tulafale.