'Once Were Warriors' Leather Jacket

'Once Were Warriors' leather jacket, a black, 100% cowhide jacket, detailed with 'Toa Aotearoa' and red tiki emblem. Featuring snap-back lapels, shoulder epaulettes, zip cuffs, four zip-pockets at front, an attached buckled belt, silvertone hardware, and fully lined. Executed 1994, the hugely successful feature film Once were Warriors, directed by Lee Tamahori and produced by Robin Scholes, is a hard-hitting social-realist drama about Maori poverty and despair in contemporary New Zealand . In spite of their brutal, anti-social behaviour, the young urban Maori in the film's Toa gang are strikingly costumed in beautiful black leather gear, with tattoos and piercings, in response to the criticism that he had created a 'Designer' gang, Tamahori, in an interview with Helen Martin (the Big picture, issue 5, Winter 1995) explained the look of the gang was intended to reflect the sentiments of the title, and to convey the idea that, within their own structure, Maori gangs have a loyal and disciplined alternative whanau, the costumes in the film were imagined by production designer Michael Kane and crafted by costume designer Pauline Bowkett, This jacket was created for Robin Scholes as a parting gift after production wrapped on the film, image courtesy of Robin Scholes and the Alexander Turnbull library, 1993, with thanks to the New Zealand fashion Museum for their assistance in cataloging this item, reference: http://www.nzfashionmuseum.org.nz/collection-garment/once-were-warriors-film-costume/