Synopsis

From Samoa to the Pacific diaspora, Keepers of the Afi explores how a culture evolves without losing the essence of where it came from.

Through five voices across Samoa, American Samoa, Hawaiʻi and Aotearoa New Zealand, the film traces Siva Afi, the Samoan fire knife dance, from its origins in the ancient war dance ailao to its place in the lives of a new generation. The family of pioneer Freddie Letuli reflects on his vision for the practice; a mentor works to keep the language and tradition alive for Pacific youth; a four-time world fire knife champion uses the dance to maintain his ancestral connection; and Miss Samoa and Miss Pacific Islands Moemoana Schwenke challenges who has the right to carry the flame, reclaiming the tradition’s connection to the Samoan warrior goddess Nafanua in the face of resistance to women’s participation.

Together, their stories reveal Siva Afi as more than performance. It becomes a vessel for Indigenous spirituality, identity, community and a pathway back to ancestry for a diaspora negotiating life between worlds.

As the flame passes from one generation to the next, Keepers of the Afi asks the questions; what does it mean to inherit a tradition and can culture can change without losing its essence?

Logline

A flame that once meant war now means cultural survival. Keepers of the Afi follows Siva Afi across Samoa and its diaspora, from an ancient Samoan war dance to a living inheritance: challenged, reclaimed and carried forward by a new generation that refuses to let it go out.