Ata Pūao

Allie Howell (Waitaha-a-Hei, Ngāti Rangiwewehi, Pākehā) is an emerging tāhine filmmaker whose work is grounded in tāhuhu kōrero (history), whakapapa, and the weaving of past and present to inform contemporary cinema that is lyrical, resistant, and deeply connected to community.

Raised in Paraparaumu and a graduate of the New Zealand Broadcasting School, she began her career as an editor, developing a skillset in shaping narrative and crafting emotionally resonant stories that speak to te iwi Māori, takatāpuitanaga, and our connections across Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa.

I'm a 23 year old takatāpui raised in Tauranga. I
made the move up to Tāmaki Makaurau two years
ago with the intention of diving behind the scenes
of the film industry. I knew I wanted to be involved in
film from a young age and have been doing work in
television since I was 8. Recently I’ve acted as a
lead character in the final episode of the TVNZ
anthology series ‘Motherhood’.
I am a part of the House of Dawn where I have
produced multiple events and workshops with
hundreds of participants. My experience includes
scouting and booking venues, hiring lighting, set
production, and contracting DJs and MCs. We have
managed to accomplish these successful events
on a small budget.
Organising and problem-solving are my strong suits.
I am hoping to be up-skilled and gain more industry
knowledge throughout this process so that I may
be a part of bringing more important perspectives
to the screen.

For the past 6 years I have been working as a self-
employed hairdresser, with an online following of

17,000+, so am comfortable with running a
business, content creation, marketing, building an
audience, creating a smooth schedule, and
maintaining valuable interpersonal connections.