For 50 years, Vision Maker Media (visionmakermedia.org) has been an industry leader in sharing Indigenous stories. To commemorate this milestone, VMM is celebrating Native heritage, identity and community with a year-long film festival, “Everything is Connected,” available to view online or in person.
On September 14, “Uncovering Boarding Schools: Stories of Resistance and Resilience” screens at The Ross Theater. The film chronicles Klamath Tribal members’ ongoing efforts toward community reconciliation as they uncover the difficult, often hidden history of Indigenous children forced into government boarding schools. The topic has drawn significant recent attention, as both the U.S. and Canadian governments have taken formal steps to address its historical and ongoing impacts.
Get free tickets at theross.org.
Online, the festival features “Spirit Plate,” a series starring award-winning celebrity chef Pyet DeSpain (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation). Viewers join DeSpain in the heart of Native America as she gathers, hunts, fishes and cooks in the spirit of ancestral traditions, demonstrating the inextricable connection between food and culture.
Watch now at visionmakermedia.org/education.
September’s episodes of iNative Shorts for Kids examine how different modes of travel have connected Native communities: the yearly “canoe journey” in the Northwest Coast, kayak building in the Alutiiq tradition, dog sledding in Alaska and the evolution of horses in North America. Together, they demonstrate the diversity of travel as people strive to stay connected.
Watch at youtube.com/@iNativeShortsforKids.