Film producer Migiwa Ozawa (left), Director of the film Katherine McRae

Educating women about maternity services is crucial for improving health outcomes and empowering informed choices, leading to healthier families and communities.

Director of the film Katherine McRae, “Pacific Mothers,” emphasizes this movie focuses on women’s empowerment and their decision-making.

The movie also highlights the importance of community, traditional birthing knowledge, and the connection between caring for the planet and nurturing families in New Zealand, Japan, the Cook Islands, Tahiti, and Hawai’i.

McRae says the movie highlights the lack of maternity services in Pacific Island countries which poses serious challenges to maternal and child health.

“I hope that the film works as a starter for conversations about improving all of our maternity systems. How can we build maternity systems that support the mother, support the father, and support the whole family to have a really good start to that child’s life? Because at that point, when that child is born, you become a parent. You’ve never been a parent before. And so if that’s a fantastic experience, or if it’s not a fantastic experience, we don’t have full control over the birth.”

McRae adds that through this movie, they are trying to create awareness of prioritizing women’s health by nurturing the importance of birth control.

Film producer Migiwa Ozawa is urging people to watch the documentary to watch the documentary as it features artists from the Pacific Islands who are sharing their experiences and challenges that they have faced during the maternity period.

The movie is premiering at the 4th Pacific Human Rights Film Festival at Damodar City in Suva tonight.