KIA ORANA!
For the first-ever POP48, five Cook Islands crews had just 48 hours to write, shoot and cut a short film - and we had a blast doing it. Grab a snack and watch all five!
Every crew got the same ingredients: the theme Culture, the line “That doesn’t belong there”, one whistle, and just 48 hours to turn it all into a 4-6 minute film. Five crews, five completely different takes. Grab a snack and watch them all.
The Cook Islands was the smallest nation in the competition, but that’s part of the fun. Five local teams took on 48 hours to tell a story, and now Cook Islands creativity stands alongside filmmakers from across the Pacific.
We were proudly the smallest nation in the first-ever POP48, but great stories don’t depend on the size of your country, crew or budget.
POP48 took the skills local creators use every day, filming, editing and publishing, and put them to work telling stories under pressure.
It was also about building confidence in Cook Islands filmmakers and storytellers, and giving local creatives a platform to back themselves. Five crews did exactly that.
20 films. 4 countries. 1 challenge. Five teams each from the Cook Islands, Fiji, Samoa and the Solomon Islands made 20 brand-new Pacific short films, and they’re all out now.
We may have just selected the best teams across these four Pacific nations. The films are out. You be the judge!
Pouarii Tanner and Henry Ah-Foo Taripo were the Cook Islands executive producers for POP48 through Pacific Standard Time (PST) Studio, and helped bring the challenge to life in Rarotonga.
With backgrounds in film, design and creative storytelling, they supported the five Cook Islands teams through the 48-hour challenge - keeping the energy high, removing the roadblocks and giving each crew the space to create, experiment and back themselves.
48 hours, not much sleep and a lot of laughs. Here’s what went on behind the camera.
How Pacific Standard Time got five local crews ready for the first-ever POP48.
Read the article → Cook Islands News · 28 September 2026Meet the five Cook Islands teams and the films they made in 48 hours.
Read the article →Stay tuned for the announcement of the next POP48 film challenge. Follow POP48 Cook Islands on Facebook so you don’t miss it.