It has only been one month since SpongeBob Tarau Porowhā and Dora Mātātoa, popular cartoons translated into Māori, have been airing on Māori Television, and already feedback has been flooding in.
Producer, Leon Blake says, “Feedback that I have received from families and parents have been really positive, pretty much all of the feedback.”
In just over a month, hundreds of kids have fallen in love with their favourite cartoons all over again, speaking Māori.
According to Producer, Pania Papa, “The feedback I've received is how different tribal dialects have been incorporated into SpongeBob, and the simplicity of Dora's Māori, which is easy for the kids and their parents to follow.”
The success of these cartoons have made producers Pania Papa and Leon Blake also think about creating Māori cartoons, telling Māori stories.
A request for three more series of SpongeBob and Dora translated in Māori have been made, come November we will find out if this success will continue.