England 1859. Mary Stevens, a young Māori teacher from New Zealand is summoned to an opulent manor in North Yorkshire with the hopes of discovering her family history.  Plagued by disturbing visions and stranded in an unfamiliar land, Mary is forced to uncover her disturbing past and must reconnect with her heritage in order to survive.

Taratoa Stappard’s debut feature is an unsettling Gothic tale in the traditional sense, as it traverses darkened corridors by candlelight, and where the horrors of the past manifest as ghostly shadows and desperate wailing. What elevates and sets MĀRAMA apart is its unflinching relationship to the evils of colonization, and the cultural appropriation of Indigenous cultures. Mārama cuts deep into the sins of the past, propelled by Ariāna Osborne’s powerful portrayal of Mary Stevens, we witness her fight for survival, and a bloody reckoning long past due.