As the inaugural People of Pasifika 48hour (POP48) film challenge nears, Pasifika TV is getting to know each of the four “hosts” in the four countries selected to compete for the top honours.
Fiji, Cook Islands, Samoa and Solomon Islands have been selected as host countries, who each recruit five teams each, to then battle it out to produce a short (four to six minutes) film in just 48 hours, from September 4-6, 2026.
Viewers will then get to vote for their favourite film when all 20 films are aired exclusively across Pacific Cooperation Broadcasting Limited (PCBL) platforms in September.
The winner will be announced in September, and the POP48 champions will receive a grand prize of a trip to Hawai’i for a film masterclass.
Chief Executive Officer of TV1 Samoa, Taulogomai (Mai) Roebeck is in charge of hosting five teams from Samoa for POP48.
Mai is confident Team Samoa has the passion and humour to triumph…
Tell us something about you?
Educated in Samoa and Australia, I started working at TV1Samoa and have been with Samoa Broadcasting Corporation (SBC) for over 20 years – first when it was under government and right through to the company’s privatisation to now. With an electronic engineering background, I started on the technical side of TV. Over the years, I have transitioned into the production side after being involved in the first non-linear training. That was transformational and the skills opened up a new world for me.
What has drawn you into the production space?
With a technical and production background, I’ve seen how challenging working behind the scenes is just to bring a piece of content to life. While we do not have access to the state-of-the-art gear this industry needs to create amazing output, but we have the talent, innovation, passion, and commitment. We pour our hearts into creating content with the resources available to us. Any limit or roadblock we face, we make sure we find our way around it with alternative means and continue to create programming that serves the best interests of our people. And that is the beauty of it all: sharing the stories with what we have in our hands. Limited resources do not have to limit us—we navigate our options find the way forward and continue.
What/who inspires you in your craft?
The inspiration comes from our people and our culture. Naturally talented, gifted and when given the opportunity and resources, the sky is the limit.
Why will you be the host with the most?
We have the passion, a sense of humour, we laugh at and with ourselves, and have the authentic Samoan-ness to deliver no matter what, all while having an absolute blast. I think we will take out the challenge (confidence much!). One of our very own just took out the Pacific Music Award for best video (Shepherd Reigns’ music video). It is a solid boost in confidence and a renewed drive and faith that yes, we have the capacity and potential to take what we have offshore and shine. The region and the world are hungry for our authentic local eyes and voices. We are going into the POP48 challenge with escalated determination, commitment, and confidence to do our country and region proud.
What makes your organisation stand out from the rest?
We have walked and struggled through every side of the industry. We know the pressure, we know the limitations, and we know our culture and our beloved people. We love our culture and embrace it at every opportunity we have, in any way we can. We strive to stay relevant to our people from the grassroots up, and we are deeply invested in giving local talent a platform like this to shine on regional and global stages, made possible with POP48.
What outcomes are you anticipating?
A stronger, more cohesive, and collaborative pool of amazing content creators in Samoa who will drive the development of our industry forward. The new gear and new skills are an amazing added bonus, alongside the incredible regional content we will all be proud of.
Fa’afetai tele lava!
Fa’afetai tele lava for the opportunity! How amazing it would be to have a masterclass available via webinar to all participating teams, for an opportunity when funds permit. We cannot be more grateful and appreciative of this amazing opportunity.