Justyn Ah Chong

When a Native Hawaiian Police Officer is called in on his day off to evict the protesting Native Hawaiian residents of a homeless settlement deemed “illegal” by the State of Hawaii, he is forced to choose between supporting his family, upholding the law, and doing what is morally right . . . or PONO.

In between growing frustrations toward cleaning up after an endless parade of tourists and reflections on a traumatizing memory, a voice rises from within a soft-spoken Hawaiian janitor down on the sidewalk in Waikiki. This narrative short film is inspired by a collection of poetry published posthumously featuring the work of Kānaka Maoli poet Wayne Kaumualii Westlake (1947-84).

A lonely man's voyeuristic obsession with the private lives of his co-workers spirals into a desperate attempt for attention and a violent spectacle of horror.

After receiving a kahea (calling) from ancestral lineages on Maui to create kapa for unearthed iwi kūpuna (skeletal remains), cultural practitioner Aʻiaʻi Bello extended the calling to her circle of women in the community. Those that stepped forth were propelled on a transformative journey, and as they learned to transform the wauke plant into sacred kapa, they found themselves changed in the process as well.

The Fukumitsu ‘Ohana (family) of Hakipu’u are Native Hawaiian taro farmers and keepers of this generational practice. While much of O’ahu has become urbanized, Hakipu’u remains a kīpuka (oasis) of traditional knowledge where great chiefs once resided and their bones still remain.

When a Native Hawaiian Police Officer is called in on his day off to evict the protesting Native Hawaiian residents of a homeless settlement deemed “illegal” by the State of Hawaii, he is forced to choose between supporting his family, upholding the law, and doing what is morally right . . . or PONO.

In between growing frustrations toward cleaning up after an endless parade of tourists and reflections on a traumatizing memory, a voice rises from within a soft-spoken Hawaiian janitor down on the sidewalk in Waikiki. This narrative short film is inspired by a collection of poetry published posthumously featuring the work of Kānaka Maoli poet Wayne Kaumualii Westlake (1947-84).

In between growing frustrations toward cleaning up after an endless parade of tourists and reflections on a traumatizing memory, a voice rises from within a soft-spoken Hawaiian janitor down on the sidewalk in Waikiki. This narrative short film is inspired by a collection of poetry published posthumously featuring the work of Kānaka Maoli poet Wayne Kaumualii Westlake (1947-84).

A lonely man's voyeuristic obsession with the private lives of his co-workers spirals into a desperate attempt for attention and a violent spectacle of horror.

After receiving a kahea (calling) from ancestral lineages on Maui to create kapa for unearthed iwi kūpuna (skeletal remains), cultural practitioner Aʻiaʻi Bello extended the calling to her circle of women in the community. Those that stepped forth were propelled on a transformative journey, and as they learned to transform the wauke plant into sacred kapa, they found themselves changed in the process as well.

The Fukumitsu ‘Ohana (family) of Hakipu’u are Native Hawaiian taro farmers and keepers of this generational practice. While much of O’ahu has become urbanized, Hakipu’u remains a kīpuka (oasis) of traditional knowledge where great chiefs once resided and their bones still remain.