Samoa exploded with the colours and patterns of Polynesia last night as a crew of 85 talented designers models and dancers brought their talents to the runway.

Models practising earlier in the week for the Saturday night show 

Models in Dane Fabricius designs

Showcased like jewels glittering across the Tanoa Tusitala pool, the designs saw a mix of emerging and established fashion houses showcase their creations.

While Fiji and PNG have lead the way with their fashion week events, this first ever week long festival of fashion now puts Samoa on the map as a design force to be reckoned with in the region.

Organised by the Samoa Arts Council, the runway show was a chance to put the spotlight on some of the new young design talent in Samoa. As the country now has many different outlets to sell local designs and a huge demand from locals as well as tourists for Pacific fashion, the time is ripe for these clothes to be displayed at this level.…more

For the first time ever the Polynesian Bowl has been established - A new high school football all-star game which will feature the world's elite players of Polynesian heritage and other ancestries.

The Polynesian Football Hall of Fame announced yesterday that The Polynesian Bowl will be played Saturday, January 21, 2017, 6:00 pm at Aloha Stadium in O’ahu, Hawai’i as part of the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Weekend.

The team captains for each team are Marcus Mariota who is of Samoan descent and plays Quarter Back for the Tennessee Titans and Ronnie Stanley who is of Tongan descent and plays Offensive Tackle for the Baltimore Ravens.  Both captains have been recipients of the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award in the last 2 years.

Marcus & his father Toa share a hug after one of his games.

“Honoring my heritage is very important to me,” Mariota said in a release. “I look forward to working with the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame to make this the best high school all-star game in the country.…more

Powerhouse lock forward Jason Taumalolo has been named Rugby League Players Association's Players' Champion for the first time in his career, ending teammate Johnathan Thurston's three-year grip on the trophy. 

The 23-year-old finished the 2016 regular season with 4,002 running metres, 553 tackles, 71 tackle breaks and six tries in his best year of NRL since making his first-grade debut in 2010. 

The Cowboys star was unable to attend the gala event at Sydney's Star Casino on Tuesday night, instead accepting the award via video link in Townsville. 

Rugby league Immortal Andrew Johns fooled everyone in attendance when he announced that 'JT' had won, before explaining that it was in fact Taumalolo and not Thurston who had received the top gong.

"First of all I'd like to thank my peers for voting," Taumalolo said. 

"Like 'Johnno' (Thurston) said before, this is right up there as the best or one of the biggest awards that you can win.…more

Walt Disney's Official first full length trailer .....

Watch the brand new trailer for Disney’s Moana! See the film, starring Dwayne The Rock Johnson & Auli'i Cravalho, in theatres in 3D this Thanksgiving if you're in the US and on the 26th of December if you're in the Southern Hemisphere!

Three thousand years ago, the greatest sailors in the world voyaged across the vast Pacific, discovering the many islands of Oceania. But then, for a millennium, their voyages stopped – and no one knows why.

From Walt Disney Animation Studios comes “Moana,” a sweeping, CG-animated feature film about an adventurous teenager who sails out on a daring mission to save her people. During her journey, Moana (voice of Auli’i Cravalho) meets the once-mighty demigod Maui (voice of Dwayne Johnson), who guides her in her quest to become a master wayfinder.…more

HIGHLIGHTS .... 

The crew were in Samoa last week and caught some of the action at the Teuila Festival.

Here's some of the festival highlights in case you missed their facebook posts last week .....

POLICE MARCHING BAND 

Every morning the police marching band would march down to the Government Building in Apia, play the national anthem as the Samoan flag was raised and then march back to the Police Headquarters.

THE ANNUAL FAUTASI RACE 

A group of supporters try to get out as far as they can at Mulinu'u Point to cheer for their team as the first of the boats come around the corner.  The boats start their race out at Malie now.

The first boat passes by at Mulinu'u Point 

The winning boat "Little Rina" finishing in Apia 

Boat coming in to shore in front of Aggie Greys in Apia

Teuila Festival Stalls 

Festival Games 

The people 

Siva Afi Comp 

Miss Samoa pageant 2016 

Suggested Links:

Pani and Pani chair dance 

MACBETH ....

'Something Wicked this way Comes'

The Black Friars Theatre troupe presents an innovative re-staging of the traditional Shakespearean classic for Pasifika in Aotearoa set against a backdrop of imagined Hawaiki, fusing Polynesian music and dance with Shakespearean magic.

The South Auckland based group was formed in 2006 out of a desire to challenge the dominant stereotypes surrounding Pasifika people and to “keep talented young brown people off the street and on the stage”.  These days their mission statement has changed.…more

Sesilani Ofa

Proud Mum and One of Only a Few Tongan Police Officers

Tonga 

Q & A with Constable Sesilani Ofa

Coco blogger Aaron Taouma met up with Constable Sesilani Ofa who was the first full Tongan female police officer to serve in Auckland and one of the few Tongans in the NZ Police. She has been based at the Otahuhu Police Station for the past eight years and doing it all as a solo-mum.

We think she's a star! Check out her Question and Answer session below and find out about her inspiring story as one of our ‘Humans of the Islands’...

Q. Malo e lelei Sesilani, can you tell us a little about your life growing up and how this may have influenced you joining the Police Force?

A. I was quite fortunate to grow up in a lovely Christian family in Grey Lynn. My father was a reverend at the United Church of Tonga. My dad came from Tonga when he was about 11 or 12 where he attended Epsom Normal Intermediate then on to Auckland Boys Grammar.…more

The Pacific Fusion Fashion Show went off in South Auckland and Coconet.TV caught the action.

Held at the Andrew-Simms Botany car dealership, the fashion design competition featured a mix of emerging and established designers showcasing street wear, evening wear, haute couture and ready to wear fashion.

Besides being a designer's competition and having several non-comp showings the event was a platform for models to face off strut their stuff for a place as the Face of Fusion 2017.

The night was hosted by Latafale Auva'a (previous Miss Samoa NZ, Miss Samoa, Miss Pacific Islands and Miss World Samoa) and judged by international guest judge Lepou Peni of Lepou and Grace; social media sensation Kris Fox; and NZ Fashion Week co-owner Anna Hood.

It was an awesome night with several celebs in attendance and the man of the Olympic hour - Pita Taufatofua - also making his catwalk debut.…more