Co-Presented by<a href="https://iso-bea.ca/" target="_blank"><img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/eventive-static/bc8a151fa1c4acc3af3abbd4e4e27032.png" width="247" style="display: inline; float: left; margin: 0px 1em 1em 0px;"></a><a href="https://www.facebook.com/OISAlaw/" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);"><img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/eventive-static/2362ceb080af6b978de174d56f53d9d4.png" width="71" style="display: inline; float: left; margin: 0px 1em 1em 0px;"></a><a href="https://www.bipoctvandfilm.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/eventive-static/7fa223bf2b74ae53184122033d4c7208.png" width="297" style="max-width: 100%;"></a>

Between 2000 and 2011, seven First Nations high school students in Thunder Bay died. Five were found in rivers surrounding Lake Superior. All were forced to leave their homes in order to attend school. Anishinaabe/Polish Canadian journalist Tanya Talaga brought internationalattention to this tragedy through her award-winning non-fiction book Seven Fallen Feathers: Racism, Death, and Hard Truths in a Northern City. Inspired by Tanya Talaga’s book, Spirit to Soar is a closer look at what has happened in the wake of the inquest into the student's deaths, of how families and communities have struggled to carry on while pursuing justice for their loved ones and equity for First Nations People, and, it looks at Talaga’s own journey of trying to make sense of her role here. At its heart, this film is a story of the strength and bravery First Nations youth face every single day, when they walk out the front door and head to high school in a country that has tried to erase them. We are still here and thriving. Past FestivalsHot Docs International Documentary Film Festival <a href="https://www.makwacreative.ca/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Learn More: Spirit to Soar</a>

Spirit to Soar

The Water Walker stars teenaged climate activist Autumn Peltier (Anishinaabe-kwe, from Wikwemikoong First Nation). The film is narrated by Academy Award-nominated actor Graham Greene (Oneida, Six Nations of the Grand River). Autumn, an influential figure in the global youth-led environmental movement, was named chief water commissioner by the Anishinabek Nation. The film follows her as she prepares to speak at the United Nations. The Water Walker features Michif (Métis) artist Christi Belcourt’s renowned paintings, brought to life with stunning animated sequences. Past FestivalsToronto International Film Festival <a href="https://tiff.net/events/the-water-walker" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Learn More: The Water Walker</a>

The Water Walker

In Canada, a remote Indigenous community is fighting for its survival in the age of climate change. Extreme weather, changes in ice formation, and wildfires have made hunting and gathering for traditional food more and more dangerous and difficult. Along the Winisk River is a portrait of a community as it comes together to embark on a caribou hunt in the freezing subarctic winter of Canada. The film explores the impacts of this struggle against a backdrop of systemic discrimination and calls for the government of Canada to do better to protect Indigenous communities.

Toronto Palestine Film Festival

Weengushk International Film Festival: Indigenous films at TPFF