We are incredibly proud to celebrate former Hillcrest High School student Vea Mafile’o, whose latest work is reaching cinema screens across Aotearoa and around the world.
Vea is the New Zealand co-director of Lomu, a major feature documentary telling the story of one of Aotearoa’s most iconic sporting figures, Jonah Lomu. Working alongside Irish filmmaker Gavin FitzGerald, Vea has helped bring to the screen a deeply personal portrait that goes well beyond Jonah’s extraordinary achievements on the rugby field.
The 106-minute documentary traces Jonah’s journey from his Tongan roots and upbringing to becoming rugby’s first truly global superstar. Through previously unseen family footage and interviews with those closest to him, including his mother Hepi and brother John, the film explores his family, culture, faith, health struggles and the pressures that accompanied his rapid rise to international fame.
For Vea, the project has a particularly meaningful cultural connection. Her family comes from the same island in Tonga as the Lomu family, and her contribution to the film has helped ensure Jonah’s Tongan identity and family story sit at the heart of the documentary.
The film brings together the different perspectives of its two directors – Gavin as an Irish filmmaker and lifelong rugby fan, and Vea through her connection to Tongan culture and storytelling. Together, they have sought to tell not simply the story of Jonah Lomu the rugby player, but of Jonah the son, brother and young Tongan-New Zealander navigating extraordinary fame.
Lomu has already screened internationally at film festivals in Dublin, Glasgow and Sydney and was selected as the Centrepiece Film of the 2026 Whānau Mārama New Zealand International Film Festival in Auckland. It will screen as part of the festival in Hamilton on Saturday 29 August, before its wider New Zealand cinema release.
Vea is an award-winning director and producer whose previous work includes the acclaimed documentary For My Father’s Kingdom. She has worked extensively across Aotearoa and the Pacific and has built a career championing Pasifika stories and perspectives on screen.
Her journey also has its beginnings here at Hillcrest. Reflecting previously on her time as a student, Vea spoke warmly about the friendships she formed and the teachers who gave her the space and opportunities she needed to grow, particularly within Māori and Art.
To see a former Hillcrest student now helping tell the story of one of Aotearoa and the Pacific’s most recognisable figures on the international stage is something our whole school community can be proud of.
Congratulations, Vea – another wonderful example of where finding your place at Hillcrest can lead.
