MONICA IN THE SOUTH SEAS

July 1975. Monica Flaherty, daughter of Robert and Frances Flaherty, cinéma vérité pioneers, Richard Leacock and his student from MIT Sarah Hudson travel to Samoa, to the island of Savai’i. Monica’s aim is to create a perfect sound  version of the silent feature film Moana (1926), directed by her parents in her childhood paradise. Being alien to Samoan culture, Monica, Sarah and Ricky are soon pulled into a complex dynamic of gifts, exchange and honoring.