Movies & TV Shows from Papua New Guinea

Romila, Anand and guide Papa Buka journey through Papua New Guinea's remote villages, documenting WWII veterans' vivid memories of fighting against Japan, facing unexpected challenges along their quest.

In 1986, Melbourne musician David Bridie of the groups Not Drowning, Waving and My Friend the Chocolate Cake travelled to Papua New Guinea, where he heard the heartfelt sounds of George Telek and the Moab Stringband’s ‘Abebe’ (‘Butterfly Song’) on board a bus. It marked the beginning of a profound fascination with the nation and its rich culture – and of a bond with Telek that would last more than 30 years.

During the Pacific war on the coast of Papua New Guinea, the Papuans want to claim the god Cargo's gifts by developing a new rite.

Before the 1970s, the Commonwealth Film Unit represented the people of PNG in a paternalistic way, as curiosities. The unit used pompous voice-overs telling viewers what they should believe. Les McLaren and Annie Stiven are two of a group of Australian filmmakers who have lived and worked in PNG during the past 25 years and who see their roles rather differently. Through their films, they have endeavoured to reflect Papua New Guineans' complexity of thought, language and culture, using a wide variety of filmic styles and techniques. The film features interviews with a variety of Australian filmmakers who have worked extensively in PNG, including Bob Connolly and Robin Anderson, Chris Owen, Dennis O'Rourke and Gary Kildea. This documentary is a fascinating tracing of PNG culture and history from the 1930s until today.

Kabelbel follows a group of villagers as they are taught the art of canoe making and seafaring by clan elders. Intergenerational differences and a sense of social change emerge along the way, along with a profound sense of cultural pride. Shot entirely on the remote island of Masahet in Papua New Guinea’s New Ireland Province, Kabelbel captures the daily rhythm of contemporary village life and reveals with great nuance the importance of custom and tradition in a changing world.

In the Highlands of Papua New Guinea, a grassroots family makes a precarious living by trading in betelnut, one of the world's most widely used narcotics. This is the story of resilient people who have few material possessions but who face each day with dignity and quiet determination. As they go about their daily work, the film presents us with a vivid portrait of present-day life in Papua New Guinea.

A man encounters colorful characters while driving a taxi in Papua New Guinea.

6-year-old Trish loves her daddy so much that she waits for him at the door every day to give him a cuddle as he returns from work. One day, the daily routine is broken, and one is left to bear it all. This film is a message about safety and family relationship.

A companion to Yumi yet, O’Rourke and Kildea’s Ileksen (derived from the English 'election’) documents Papua New Guinea’s first general election in 1977. The film records a broad cross-section of candidates who, without an extended media network at their disposal, rely on relentless campaigning, ingenuity and personal charisma to attract votes. Emphasising the divide between coastal people and highlanders, Ileksen looks at the election campaign, election day and the political manouvering that goes with the formation of a government.

Documents Independence Day of Papua New Guinea on September 16, 1975, comparing the pageantry of local celebrations with the official ceremony in the capital. Also provides historical background about the area's 19th-century colonization by Holland, Germany, and Great Britain.

My Name is Pengungsi (Refugee) follows the lives and families of two children, both named “refugee”, who were born and currently being raised in parts of West Papua distant from their families’ places of origin.

An anthropological documentary that gives voice to the Orokavia women in Papua New Guinea and shows their daily lives.

This film reveals the rich tribal heritage of women in New Guinea by examining ancient customs and beliefs. It also reveals a modern woman challenging tradition and the pulls of the past.

A study of life on remote Nukumanu Atoll, a Polynesian outlier of Papua New Guinea. Traditional culture has survived, but over-population and extensive emigration of workers to developing areas are bringing rapid change to the small community.

A Lae is a little metal foundry whose owner has gone back to Australia and which the workers have taken over, with some help from the provincial government. An experience in cooperative-management that is new in Papua-New Guinea.

The film documents the last performance of the ritual for the fertility goddess Amb Kor, in the Western Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea. Shot over a period of approximately 15 years, the anthropologists and filmmakers have been participant-observers during a time of pivotal change for the clans of the Kavelka tribal group.

For the Latmul of Papua-New-Guinea, the head is all the being substance. Therefore they conserve their cranes of their ancestors, which after being cleaned and modeled are painted like the dead.

A poignant exploration of one man’s journey to break the violent chains of intergenerational trauma.

Anthropological tourism in New Guinea. Ten days of immersion in Irian Jaya.

For many people, the mention of Papua New Guinea will evoke images such as remote highlands cultures and tribal warriors; or perhaps tropical islands and palm fringed beaches, or it may bring to mind darker images of poverty, corruption and raskol violence. But in PNG's capital, Port Moresby, things are starting to look a little different. PNG is slowly joining the globalised world, and if you look closely at this society in transition you can see signs of a modest middle class on the rise, and a new generation coming of age. In Moresby you can find a small band of business people, professionals, managers, and creatives, all working hard to build a better life for themselves and their families. Moresby Modern, is the stories of 7 such people, as they work in the challenging environment of a developing country, learning to balance the traditional expectations of their culture with the demands of modern society.

A man and a woman have different personalities and are polar opposites of each other. However, they share some undeniable chemistry that brews the beginning of a romance.

Pawa Meri (Powerful Women) is a six-part documentary series portraying the lives of six Papua New Guinean women who have each achieved extraordinary things in life. The women come from diverse backgrounds and represent a variety of themes relevant to development in PNG.

Warriors in Transit is a 1992 Papua New Guinea theatrical television series, written and directed by William Takaku and Albert Toro. It consists in eight episodes, lasting twenty-five minutes each. It was the first ever "broadcast-length drama wholly conceived and produced by Papua New Guineans". Its production cost approximately €125,000. The series "depicts political duplicity and the disintegration of a family in the Port Moresby settlements". Its central characters are parents who attempt, unsuccessfully, to look after their sick child. Takaku has stated that the parents' characters represent the Papua New Guinean government, while the child represents the nation.