{"id":528476,"date":"2026-03-17T09:01:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-17T09:01:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/528476\/"},"modified":"2026-03-17T09:01:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-17T09:01:10","slug":"lahaina-familys-land-struggle-featured-in-new-documentary-maui-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/528476\/","title":{"rendered":"Lahaina family\u2019s land struggle featured in new documentary : Maui Now"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>   March 16, 2026, 3:30 PM HST  <\/p>\n<p>\n<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"536\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/taro-cultivation-1024x536.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-519639\"\/>Taro cultivation is shown in a screengrab from a trailer for the film \u201cEA (SOVEREIGN).\u201d PC: YouTube<\/p>\n<p>A new feature-length documentary following a Lahaina family\u2019s 20-year legal battle to protect ancestral kuleana lands in Kaua\u02bbula Valley premieres this week at the DisOrient Asian American Film Festival.<\/p>\n<p>The film, \u201cEA (SOVEREIGN),\u201d focuses on Kanaka \u02bb\u014ciwi community leader Ke\u02bbeaumoku Kapu and his family\u2019s efforts to reclaim and steward valley lands. Directors Noah Keone Viernes and Sancia Miala Shiba Nash documented the historic quiet title jury trial that brought disputes over land ownership and Indigenous rights before a jury.<\/p>\n<p>The documentary also highlights the legacy of the N\u0101 \u02bbAik\u0101ne o Maui Cultural Center. While the Lahaina wildfires destroyed the center\u2019s physical structure in August 2023, the film shows how the cultural practices and community purpose it fostered remain intact.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"536\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/kapu-1024x536.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-519641\"\/>Ke\u02bbeaumoku and U\u02bbilani Kapu are featured in the film \u201cEA (SOVEREIGN). PC: YouTube<\/p>\n<p>ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW AD<\/p>\n<p>Interviews with Ke\u02bbeaumoku Kapu, U\u02bbilani Kapu and others frame sovereignty as a daily lived responsibility rather than an abstract concept. The production uses digital mapping and animation to illustrate the history and terrain of Kaua\u02bbula Valley.<\/p>\n<p>Following its current festival run, the film is scheduled to screen at the Archaeology Channel International Film Festival in May. The official trailer is available at\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=UKIyFkci7t8\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=UKIyFkci7t8<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"536\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/kanaka-1024x536.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-519640\"\/>The film \u201cEA (SOVEREIGN) tells the story of a Lahaina family\u2019s struggle to steward ancestral kuleana lands in Kaua\u02bbula Valley. PC: YouTube<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"March 16, 2026, 3:30 PM HST Taro cultivation is shown in a screengrab from a trailer for the&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":528477,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[52],"tags":[237622,237623,237624,88,237625,237626,206,237627,237628,237629,237630],"class_list":["post-528476","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-archaeology-channel-international-film-festival","tag-disorient-asian-american-film-festival","tag-ea-sovereign","tag-entertainment","tag-kauaula-valley","tag-keeaumoku-kapu","tag-movies","tag-na-aikane-o-maui-cultural-center","tag-noah-keone-viernes","tag-sancia-miala-shiba-nash","tag-uilani-kapu"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/528476","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=528476"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/528476\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/528477"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=528476"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=528476"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=528476"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}