Lifting of the Makutu

June Miru's first child died soon after his birth in 1963. All four of her surviving daughters went on to give birth to sons with the same deformities, all of whom died soon after birth. Award-winning documentary Lifting of the Makutu explores the relationship between the Miru/Tito whanāu and Stephen Robertson, a paediatrician and geneticist who worked doggedly for seven years to give the family a scientific answer as to why seven baby boys died. June, along with daughters Phyllis, Karen, Shona and Noki-Jane discuss years of grief, and June's dread about a 'makutu' or Māori curse hanging over the whanāu.

It is like being an explorer: it's setting eyes upon something that no other human mind has set their eyes upon and understood, at least to a limited degree . . . and understand it, not out of cleverness actually, but out of the help I got from June and her family, and multiple other families, from the help I got from [geneticist] Andrew Wilkie, and from just a bit of sheer sort of doggedness, not giving up.

– Dr Stephen Robertson on his investigation into the genetic mutation in June Miru's whanāu

Key Cast & Crew

Simon Shazell

Sound Mix

Andy Bean

Editor

Jude Callen

Network Executive

David Long

Composer

Renaud Maire

Cinematographer

Peta Carey

Director, Producer