B42040A1A1A

B42040A1A1A is a concentrated installation of two ambitious moving image artworks by Luke Willis Thompson developed over three years. Each film imagines a decolonial future for Aotearoa through the visual language of political theatre.

Whakamoemoeā (2024), commissioned for Sharjah Biennial 16, is set in 2040 and envisions the moment constitutional transformation in Aotearoa is announced. Broadcaster and MP Oriini Kaipara is cast as a spokesperson delivering an official address in te reo Māori at Te Whare Rūnanga, Waitangi, announcing a transition from Westminster-style governance to an Indigenous plurinational state.

Soro (2025) is set in a not-too-distant future and reimagines redress of the 2021 Dawn Raids Apology. Focusing on NZSL interpreter Alan Wendt while an inferred Prime Minister's speech plays out of frame, the work envisions bold reparations being delivered. Captured in black and white 35mm film, it presents a dream-like atmosphere where Aotearoa cuts alliances to Western powers and commits to a united Oceania.

The works feature real-life individuals and significant sites, using what Thompson describes as 'political sci-fi' to blur lines between philosophy and biography, activism and storytelling.