My Partner

My Partner is a story of two high school seniors in rural West Maui who seemingly live in different worlds coming to learn that they aren’t so different after all. Pili (Kaipo Dudoit), an extroverted Hawaiian jock, and Edmar (Jayron Muñoz), an introverted Filipino gamer, are part of a rivalry between two senior-class friend groups at Lahainaluna High School. The rivalry comes to a head when Edmar’s group is caught overfishing a native species in a restored fresh water stream by Pili’s group.

Things get interesting when Pili and Edmar’s social studies teacher assigns the boys, who are in different class periods, to work on their semester project together. Pili and Edmar strongly protest but are forced to work together.

Slowly, Pili and Edmar learn that despite surface appearances, they and their cultures have much in common. As they spend time together working on their class project, they become closer — Pili learning about Filipino immigrants to Hawai’i and Edmar learning about Hawaiian culture and history. Things come to a head when their friends get into a big fight at school.

Set in rural West Maui, My Partner showcases many of the current issues facing its people today.

Keliʻi Grace is a Director, Cinematographer, and Editor. Often called a visual translator for his innate ability to bring to life the soul of the story, Keliʻi imparts a feeling to each moment in a raw and authentic way. His work reveals his resonant understanding of Hawaiian culture, and he is most proud of the work he has done that shares his culture with those outside the state of Hawai’i.

Plays in

Narrative Features