Rena Owen (Once Were Warriors), Miriama McDowell (Coming Home in the Dark) and Tioreore Ngatai-Melbourne (Cousins) play cherished Maori activist Dame Whina Cooper throughout the years in this biopic directed by James Napier Robertson (The Dark Horse) and Paula Whetu Jones (Waru).

The story of Dame Whina Cooper, the beloved Maori matriarch who worked tirelessly to improve the rights of her people, especially women. Flawed yet resilient, Whina tells the story of a woman formed by tradition, compelled by innovation, and guided by an instinct for equality and justice whose legacy as the Te Whaea o te Motu (Mother of the Nation) was an inspiration to an entire country.