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On the east coast of New Zealand, the Whangara people believe their presence there dates back a thousand years or more to a single ancestor, Paikea, who escaped death when his canoe capsized by riding to shore on the back of a whale. From then on, Whangara chiefs have always been the first-born and male. Many generations later, the contemporary tale revolves around a young mother whose male newborn twin dies in childbirth. Her young husband flees New Zealand in grief, leaving grandparents Koro and Nanny Flowers to raise the sole survivor, a feisty little girl named Pai, who radiates with life and energy. Itâs no wonder that her grandmother and the entire community love her, but alas, the grandfather she worships is too busy mourning the loss of the baby boy he expected would lead the tribe to better days.
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| Production Status: |
Released |
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| Logline: |
A girl's relationship with a whale ends up saving her village. |
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| Genres: |
Art/Foreign, Drama and Romance |
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| Running Time: |
1 hr. 44 min. |
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| Release Date: |
June 6th, 2003 (LA/NY) |
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| MPAA Rating: |
PG-13 for brief language, drug reference. |
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| Distributors: |
Newmarket Films
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| Production Co.: |
Apollomedia FilmManagement GMBH, South Pacific Pictures, Pandora Film Produktion
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| Financiers: |
Co-Financier ($475,000): Filmstiftung NRW
Co-Financier: New Zealand Film Commission, New Zealand On Air
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| U.S. Box Office: |
$20,772,796 |
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| Filming Locations: |
New Zealand
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| Produced in: |
Germany |
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In Theaters 
