Te Ao’s single-channel film what was or could be today (again) follows elite athlete Ngarama Milner-Olsen as she swims across Aotearoa’s largest body of water, Taupō-nui-a-tia (Lake Taupō). The film borrows its title from an inscription found on the reverse of the painting by Te Ao’s grandmother, depicting a small wetland reserve in the region surrounding Taupō-nui-a-tia that the artist’s family is closely tied to.