On the east coast of New Zealand in the 1960s, two M?ori sheep-shearing families — the Mahanas and the Poatas — are sworn enemies and commercial rivals. Fourteen-year-old Simeon Mahana, the youngest son, seeks allies against his traditionalist grandfather. As Simeon unravels the truth behind the longstanding family vendetta, he risks not just his own future prospects but the cohesion of the entire tight-knit society.

[Ritu Birla, the Richard Charles Lee Director of the Asian Institute at the Munk School of Global Affairs, is recognized for bringing the study of Indian economy to current questions in social and political theory. She will speak about The Patriarch in an extended Q&A session following the second public screening of the film.]