Marked with some controversy<\/a>, ‘Lomu’ had been in the works for longer than expected after his widow Nadene<\/a> sought legal action in hopes of protecting his legacy and their family.<\/p>\n However, the Intellectual Property office ruled in 2024 that Tongan-Kiwi filmmaker Vea Mafile’o and Irish filmmaker Gavin Fitzgerald could go ahead with production – following a grant of $800,000 from the Film Commission. <\/p>\n Guests on the red carpet outside Auckland’s Civic Theatre ahead of the New Zealand premiere of Lomu. (Source: 1News)<\/p>\n “There’s always complex moving parts to it, but what this documentary has been able to do is give a lot of people a sense of healing,” Mafile’o told 1News. <\/p>\n She said it brought Lomu, and his story “back into the light, and gives us an opportunity to actually celebrate him”. <\/p>\n “It’s going up 11 years since his passing now, and a lot of people, a lot of youth just actually don’t know about him,” she said. <\/p>\n Tongan-Kiwi filmmaker Vea Mafile’o. (Source: 1News)<\/p>\n She said archival footage shows him in Tonga speaking Tongan, saying some people may not have realised how connected he was to his heritage. <\/p>\n “I think we get a really nice, unique view into his family life and his home life.”<\/p>\n![\"Guests](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/guests-on-the-red-carpet-outside-aucklands-civic-theatre-ahe-P5S5S3YD2NAQBIEUSFNJAKBHLA.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Tongan-Kiwi](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/tongan-kiwi-filmmaker-vea-mafileo-QPFK2IEDNBD4DOUWWK2KMYIGMU.png\")
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