Press release

Indy film short about Kalaupapa has world premiere at HIFF46

Former Hawaiʻi news producer and former anchor partner to create PILI HOU: Finding Helen

September 28, 2026 (HONOLULU) – A local woman’s search for her family’s matriarch ends up taking her to Kalaupapa, Molokaʻi, with a startling discovery.

Film cameras follow former longtime Hawaiʻi news anchor Diane Ako’s journey from her home in Honolulu to a flight to Kalaupapa, to retrace her ancestor’s final footsteps. “With the help of nonprofit Ka ʻOhana o Kalaupapa, I went on behalf of my family to pili hou – rejoin – with my long-lost great-grandmother.”

It’s come to life as a 15-minute film short, Pili Hou: Finding Helen (pilihoufilm.com), by Martha Shade Productions (marthashadeproductions.com).

The Hawaiʻi International Film Festival (HIFF) selected Pili Hou as part of its 2026 official film selections. The film will make its world premiere in this festival. Screening dates are:

·       Saturday, October 31 at 1:45 p.m. - Consolidated Theatres Kahala

·       Sunday, November 1 at 1:15 p.m. - Consolidated Theatres Kahala

·       Sunday, November 8 at 5:30 p.m. – Kahilu Theater on Hawaiʻi island

HIFF ticket sales at: PILI HOU-FINDING HELEN | Hawai'i International Film Festival (https://boxoffice.hiff.org/events/PILIHOU-FINDINGHELEN)

“When I heard my friend Diane talk about her genealogy search, I was drawn in by the mystery, and then fascinated by the finding. There are universal themes here of ohana (family) and aloha,” says Shade, who makes her directoral debut with this film. 

After its HIFF run, the film will make its international premiere in Sydney, Australia, at the Pasifika Film Festival (Facebook: Pasifika Fest.) That screening date is Sunday, November 29 at 11 a.m. at the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, Australia.