This is Us is a series of digital stories created by Iranian-New Zealand film-maker Ghazaleh Golbakhsh (pictured left) in response to the mosque attacks on March 15 last year. After Prime Minister Jacinda Arden said, "they are us", some Muslims were left wondering who she meant by "they" in her well-meaning but rather problematic declamation. In this series, Golbakhsh asks New Zealand Muslims what they love the most. Sometimes the answer is simple - tennis, the beach or the great outdoors. Some answers lead into deeper contexts such as the strong connections between Islam and tangata whenua or how the love of cooking allows someone to learn about patience. Some stories tackle harder issues such as xenophobia faced by a family which has been here for over a century or the realities of life since the attacks. The series aims to delight with stories that are ordinary yet special; unique yet universal.
Click here to access This Is Us