Original subtitles

- Kia ora, beautiful people. It's me, the nomadic native, back in the motherland of Aote

My family and I have lived in London for 12 years, but now we're back.

Fun fact ― I spent the first few years of my life here with my nan.

She passed four years ago, but we couldn't come back due to lockdown.

#GroundedKiwis.

RIP, Nan. Love you.

Look at this, whanau. Home sweet home.

This is my mum, Kirimaia.

She's a lawyer.

She'salwaysbusy.

We had to come back to Aotearoa cos Mum misses home,

but, really, it's cos of her work or something like that.

- Amiria, out of the way, please. - Oh my God. Aggressive.

This is my dad, Matiu. Everyone calls him Matt. He's a graphic designer.

- Can you go and help your brother, please?

Awhina atu.

- And this is my brother, Nate.

- Did you know that the wombat is the only animal in the world whose poo is cube-shaped

- Oh my God.

He talks so much.

Anyways...

here we are. The Papa-kainga.

- Amiria.

Off that phone, please.

- But I just have to― - Now.

Inaianei.

Thank you, Miss.

- All right.

Let's go.

(BIRDS CALL)

(INTRIGUING MUSIC BUILDS)

- Kia ora, e te whanau.

www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2025

(PHONE RINGS)

- What is that?

- Old people's phone.

- Old people's phone? - Well...

more like what they used before they used normal phones. (RINGING CONTINUES)

- Kia ora. Kiri speaking.

Ah, hey, cuz. Just walked through the door.

Yeah, yeah. It's great to be home, thanks

Yeah, it'll take a while to adjust ― jetlag and all.

The kids? They're overwhelmed, so we might hold off for a bit.

- Mum? Mum?

- Dad, did you get the Wi-Fi sorted before we left?

- Mum, can I go outside?

- What? - The Wi-Fi?

- Ask your mother. - Mum, Wi-Fi. - Mom, there's a―

- Hoihoi!

Everyone, shush!

(SIGHS)

Sorry, cuz. Bit hectic over here.

Oh, sounds great, but, honestly, I just don't think we're gonna make it tonight.

I'm handing you over to Matt, OK?

Ae. Hei akuanei pea.

It's Bull. - Bully boy! Kei te pehea, you doughboy?

- Wi-Fi name and password, go and connect all our devices,

including the television and your brother's gadgets.

Don't just do your own and then get sucked into editing your vlogs. OK? - All right.

- You, take that.

Haere. Puta ki waho.

Hey, and don't go wandering off.

Love you.

(CLEARS THROAT) Say it back. (CELL PHONE VIBRATES)

- Love you. - (CHUCKLES DRILY)

You're speaking with Kiri.

No bother. We're just settling in.

Yes. Preparation is key.

No. No sleep on that plane.

Just a minute. I'll check.

- What are you doing? - WOMAN: Oh! Bloody heck!

Aue!

What the blimmin' hell?

- Sorry to startle you.

- (CHUCKLES) Startle, he reckons.

You didn't startle me; you snuck up on me. There's a difference.

Taihoa.

Who are you, boy? What's your name?

- How do you do? My name's Nate. What's your name?

- Put that hand away and come and help me have a look.

- Nate's talking to a random lady in the garden. Bags not saving her.

- It's probably a local. Go tell him to leave her alone.

- Um, not my job.

Also, I have to connect everything up, remember?

- Amiria!

(SIGHS)

OK. This is the last time I'm gonna tell you this.

You will get it in due course. Do I make myself clear?

(CELL PHONE CHIMES)

Hello?

Hello?

Damn it.

- So, where are you from, Nate?

- Well, we just arrived from London, but originally we are from here ― more specifically, th

- That house?

Wait. Ko wai to whaea?

- Pardon me?

- Who is your mum, boy?

- Oh, my mum. My mum is Kiri.

- (GASPS)

Oh, Kiri girl's finally come home, eh?

Na whai ano.

Oh, and she's had a baby boy.

How come I haven't met you before?

- It's most probably because I've never been here before. It's my first time here.

My sister's been here, though.

- Matt?

Can you check on Nate?

Kei waho ra ia.

- MATT: What? - WHISPERS: Yes.

Nate. He's outside.

- She lived here with Nanny Summer so that my mum could finish her studies to become a law

My mum's a lawyer. She gets people to sign things, and they do stuff with stuff.

Anyway, I digress. Then she got a job in London.

Then she did more study in London, so they stayed and along I came, but not Nanny Summe

She stayed here. She's dead now.

- You talk a lot. - I get told that a lot. - I like it.

Nobody really talks to me much any more, so it is nice to have someone to listen to other tha

You know that Nanny Summer you talk about?

Her real name was Raumati.

Has your mum taken you to visit her yet?

- Visit her? How? She's dead.

- Oh, well, thank you for that information, Nate,

but just because somebody is dead does not mean you cannot go and say hello.

Should have been the first thing you did before you came to the whare ― not that I am judging

I am not that kind of person.

I'm just saying it would have been nice, especially for you.

I know for a fact that your Nanny Raumati would have loved to finally meet her grand-mokopu

Hmm? (NATE'S STOMACH GRUMBLES)

Are you hungry?

- Oh, I forgot.

- My mum gave me this apple.

- Ah-tutt-tutt-tutt.

Kaua.

You don't want that yuck apple. Oof.

If you eat that yuck apple, you will whakanoa yourself, and I will disappear.

- WHISPERS: Whaka what? - Whakanoa. Throw it away.

Besides, your whanau are preparing a hakari. It'd be rude not to go.

Haere mai. Come on.

- What's a hakari?

- Oh, well, a hakari, Nate, is like...

a munch.

- What's a munch?

- A lunch munch.

- Lunch munch?

- Ae, a feed.

- What's a feed?

- Mauve.

- Hmm. Lime green.

- Oof. I like forest green.

- I'm scared.

- Oh, Nate, there is nothing to be scared of. OK?

Once we get to this whare, we will find your Uncle Bull.

He will call your mum and let her know where you are. OK? Trust me.

- How do I know I can trust you?

- Well, because, Nate...

I am your Auntie Huia.

I am related to your kuia. She is my older sister, and that makes us whanau.

So as long as I have got my eye on you, no one is gonna hurt you, and you will always be sa

You hear me?

Ka pai.

- So, what were you searching for in my garden?

- Garden? Oh!

My hue.

- Hue? What's a hue? - Come on, Nate. Keep up.

(MATT AND AMIRIA SPEAK INDISTINCTLY)

- Where's Nate?

- I don't know. Probably outside still talking to that random.

- No, he's not. I just looked.

Nate!

Nate, are you inside, bub?

- Nathaniel.

Kei hea koe, boy?

- Nate!

(TENSE MUSIC BUILDS)

- Nate.

Nate?

Nate!

Nate!

(TENSE MUSIC CONTINUES)

Nate!

(BIRD CALLS)

- I looked everywhere. He's not here.

- I checked out the back, down the driveway.

- Well, he's got small legs, so he can't have gone far.

OK, Matty, jump in the truck. Head to the bridge. If he's followed the creek, he'll end up t

Amiria, you stay here, OK? Use your cell phone to call people to see if anyone else has spotte

There's a list next to the phone. Start at the top and work your way through it,

and tell them you're Nanny Summer's moko.

And leave that landline free in case someone has found him and they're trying to call us he

- Wait, what are you gonna do?

- Well, if he hasn't gone down the creek to the bridge, then he's gone over the hill.

I'm gonna try and cut him off.

- When did Mum turn into GI Jane?

- When did she get so fast?

- Don't just stand there. Kia teretere.

- Car. - Phone calls.

(GLASS BOTTLES CLINK)

(INDISTINCT CHATTER)

(HIP-HOP MUSIC)

(LAUGHTER, INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS)

- Nate, whakarongo mai.

See that hardcase-looking fulla over there in the red vest?

That is your Uncle Bull.

Now, remember, don't tell anyone that you talked to me or you followed me here, OK?

They'll all loose a bloody plot.

- Don't tell anyone about you cos they will lose the plot. Affirmative.

- Jeez! You use some big words for someone so small. You know that?

Anyway, you go over there, and you tell them this...

- Well, I tell ya, if we let these Floodgate & Co pricks get their way,

they're gonna come in here and the way of life is we know it's gonna change

unless us, or we as a community, do something.

Holy hecka. What in the bloody hell, boy?

- Greetings, Uncle Bull. Sorry to startle you.

- Oh, you didn't startle me, boy; you just snuck up on me. See, that's the―

- See, that's the difference. Yes. My apologies.

I meant to ask you if you could call my mum and let her know where I am.

I could smell the food you've been cooking,

and according to the kumara vine, you're cooking is the best in this godforsaken town.

- Well, chur. That's, uh...

That's not a lie. But wait, wait, wait. Whose boy again, are you, boy?

- Who's boy am I? - Ae, boy. Who's your mama?

- Oh, my mum. Yes, my mom's name is Kiri. We live just over that hill.

- Is that you, little man?

It is the ol' Nate Dog.

Far out. How old are you now, boy? 7? 8? 84?

I'm your uncle.

Man, I only seen baby pictures of you on that crackbook.

Jeez. How'd you get here, boy? It's a decent hike all the way from the homestead.

Must have a good nose on you, eh, just like your uncle. Sniff out anything.

Old power nostrils over here.

Nau mai hoki mai.

- Thank you for your hospitality. If I could also remind you to call my mum and let her know

- Ooh, your mum. Let's try your dad, first, eh?

If your mum's anything like she used to be, she'll be losing the plot right now.

- What is losing the plot?

- Oh, cray-cray, out-the-gate, boy, all of the above.

Hey, everybody, this is my nephew Nate. Nate Dog. Make him feel at home, eh?

Hey, Bubba girl.

Remember those baby pictures I'm showing you on crackbook? This is him now.

Hey, hus, hus, hus. Take your hu off.

Walked all the way here from the homestead.

(INSECTS CHIRP)

- MATT ON PHONE: Yes. He's safe. Uh, I'm just about to head over there now to pick him up.

Is your mum back yet? - No, not yet.

- OK. Kei te pai koe?

- Yeah, I'm fine. Uh, Mum's cousin is here. Heard Nate was missing and came over to hel

- Oh. Which cousin?

(STATIC CRACKLES) - Huh?

(GARBLED SPEECH, STATIC CRACKLES) Dad?

You're breaking up. (DIAL TONE DRONES)

Dad?

Dad found Nate.

Oh, thank God.

I hope you don't mind being in my vlog.

Sorry. What was your name again?

- Kei te pai. I don't even know what a vlog is. - (CHUCKLES)

- John Boy. Hey. Ko John Boy au.

Yeah.

Glad they found your little brother.

Oh well...

Better go, then, eh?

- Do you want a cup of... tea or something?

OK, rude.

Anyways...

(DRAMATIC MUSIC)

(LOW, OMINOUS MUSIC)

(MUSIC BUILDS)

Boring.

Anyways, as I was saying, dad found Nate. Thank God.

Um, he's on his way to Uncle Bull's house now.

- Oh, kia ora, Matua.

E pehea ana koe? Chur. Flash kakahu. (CHUCKLES)

- Tena koe. Kei te pai.

- Ah. Uh...

Kei te mohio ranei koe, kei hea te whare o Bull?

- Ae.

Kei kora.

- Ah. Tena koe, Matua.

Oh, you need a ride anywhere?

- Kao.

Haere koe i to haere.

- Ka pai.

All right, then.

Hei akuanei.

(GRAVEL CRUNCHES)

(THUD!) (EXCLAIMS)

- (PANTS)

- Kiri?

- (SIGHS)

Oh, kia ora.

(SIGHS)

(SIGHS) When I got to the top of the puke, I saw your whare,

but it was dark, and I tripped and rolled all the way down and landed in what I hope is mud

but is most probably cow shit.

- (LAUGHS)

I honestly thought she was a kehua. - Oh, I honestly can't believe he made it all the way

- Oh, this is home. Kids just find their way. - Yeah.

Oh, babe, look at the time. We need to get this little man home, back to Amiria.

- Yeah, OK. - Hey, hey, hey. Take this.

- Oh, no, kao. - Yes.

- Really? - Yes.

- Bubba. Oh, thank you. - Nga mihi.

- Hey, and if you have any free time to help us figure out this resource and consent from hap

it would really help us out, eh? - Yeah, yeah. Um...

I'll see what I can do. - Thank you, cuz.

I'll see boy out, eh?

- Ae. Po marie, Bull. - Po marie. - Ka kite, Matty boy.

Hey, little man.

Hey.

Little man.

Home time, boy.

Put your jacket on, eh.

- Goodnight, Uncle Bull.

Thanks for ringing my parents.

She was right. Your cooking is the best in this town.

- Urrta. Who told you that teka?

- Her.

- Ka kite ano, little Nate Dog.

- Bye.

(CAR DOORS SHUT)

- What did boy just say to you?

- That my mama told him I had the best cooking in town.

- (CHUCKLES) Urrta. - Mm.

Unless he can walk with kehua, he probably just got his wires crossed. (BOTH CHUCKLE

(BIRDS TWITTER, CHIRP)

(SIZZLING)

(LAID-BACK MUSIC)

- AMIRIA: Yum. Mum, what's that smell?

- Fry up. Your dad's favourite. - Uh, Nate. Eat 'em up.

- The lone wonder has finally returned, eh.

- As a matter of fact, my adventure was quite interesting and informative.

- And it won't happen again, because if you go wandering off by yourself again, I am gonna w

- Wring my bloody neck.

- Koia pu.

Glad we sorted that one out.

- Why aren't you eating?

- Fry up? No, thanks.

- Huh? But Mum said it was your favourite.

- Kao. I like my leftovers with bread, tomato and heaps of salt.

- Ew. Gout. - (CHUCKLES)

- Oh, uh, yeah, Mum, your cousin came over yesterday. - Oh, which one?

- Um...

John Boy.

- Is that your idea of a practical joke, Amiria?

- What?

- That is not funny.

Go to your room.

- But I was telling the truth.

- Enough, Amiria. - No, now.

- What? Wait. - And leave that bloody phone on the table.

(FOOTSTEPS RECEDE)

(DOOR OPENS)

(DOOR SLAMS)

- I believe Amiria.

- Finish your parakuihi, please, son. - I need some fresh air.

(DRAMATIC MUSIC)

(LOW, OMINOUS MUSIC)

- And you're sure this is going to help my whanau?

- AUNTIE HUIA: I'm sure.

- OK.

Are you three ghosts? - Oh! - Whoa, whoa, whoa.

- Kehua.

We prefer the term 'kehua', Nate.

- Oh, OK.

(DRAMATIC MUSIC)

- E te whanau, please keep your phone tracking on so I know where you all are.

- Nate, are you sure you know where you're going?

- Of course. I have, like, a hidden GPS.

Plus, Uncle Bull should be here soon. He said he'd meet me halfway.

(CELL PHONE RINGS)

- Churrpa.

- Wait. Where's your sister?

- Um, she had to go figure something out.

- BOTH: What?

- I just need you to clear my name with my parents, so even a call or a text...

- Yeah, I don't think I can do that yet.

- Why can't you help me?

- Because...

I'm a kehua.

- (CHUCKLES) A what?