Wayfinders: A Pacific Odyssey
Visit Wayfinders at PBS.org
This award-winning PBS documentary sweeps viewers into a seafaring adventure with a community of Polynesians, as they build traditional sailing canoes, learn how to follow the stars across the open ocean, and embark upon a 2,000-mile voyage in the wake of their ancestors.
Wayfinders focuses on the revival of wayfinding — the art of guiding a canoe across long distances using only natural signs: the sun, the moon, the stars and the ocean swells. Nainoa Thompson is the first Hawaiian in hundreds of years to master celestial navigation. By passing on these ancient skills to a new generation of wayfinders, Nainoa begins the process of recovering connections with the past and preparing for the challenges of the future.
Written, Produced and Directed by Gail K. Evenari
Edited by Yasha Aginsky and Nathaniel Dorsky
Musical Score by Mark Adler
Captain Cook portrayed by Patrick Stewart
Narrated by Napualani Cassidy
Wayfinders: A Pacific Odyssey was made possible by grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Additional funding was provided by Pacific Islanders in Communications through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. With special appreciation to the Polynesian Voyaging Society.