Indigenous Approaches to Holistic Wellness

Acclaimed Métis filmmaker Christine Welsh brings us a compelling documentary that puts a human face on a national tragedy – the epidemic of missing or murdered Indigenous women in Canada. The film takes a journey into the heart of Indigenous women's experience, from Vancouver's skid row, down the Highway of Tears in northern BC, and on to Saskatoon, where the murders and disappearances of these women remain unsolved.

For half of a millennium, Indigenous women have been at the forefront of their peoples' resistance to cultural assimilation. Today, they are still fighting for the survival of their cultures and their peoples--in the rain forest and the city, in the courts and the legislatures, in the Longhouse and the media. Keepers of the Fire profiles Indigenous 'warrior women' in Canada who are protecting and defending their land, their culture and their people in the time-honoured tradition of their foremothers.

For almost a century, the Coast Salish knitters of southern Vancouver Island have produced Cowichan sweaters from handspun wool. These distinctive sweaters are known and loved around the world, but the Indigenous women who make them remain largely invisible. Combining rare archival footage with the voices of three generations of woolworkers, The Story of the Coast Salish Knitters tells the tale of unsung heroines--resourceful women who knit to put food on the table and keep their families alive. Written and directed by Métis filmmaker Christine Welsh, this is a story of courage and cultural transformation--a celebration of the threads that connect the past to the future.

THIS FILM DEALS WITH MATURE SUBJECT MATTER. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED
In this feature film, the profound impact of the Canadian government’s residential school system is conveyed through the eyes of two children who were forced to face hardships beyond their years. As young children, Lyna and Glen were taken from their homes and placed in church-run boarding schools, where they suffered years of physical, sexual and emotional abuse, the effects of which persist in their adult lives. We Were Children gives voice to a national tragedy and demonstrates the incredible resilience of the human spirit.

This documentary profiles the tiny Ojibway community of Hollow Water on the shores of Lake Winnipeg as they deal with an epidemic of sexual abuse in their midst. The Manitoba justice system was unsuccessful in ending the cycle of abuse, so the community of Hollow Water took matters into their own hands. The offenders were brought home to face justice in a community healing and sentencing circle. The film is a powerful tribute to one community's ability to heal and create change.

One of the most acclaimed Indigenous directors in the world, Alanis Obomsawin came to cinema from performance and storytelling. Hired by the NFB as a consultant in 1967, she has created an extraordinary body of work—more than 50 films and counting. The Abenaki director has received numerous international honours and in 2019 was named a Companion of the Order of Canada—its highest distinction. “My main interest all my life has been education,” says Obomsawin, “because that’s where you develop yourself, where you learn to hate, or to love.”

Orange Shirt Day was launched in 2013 to call attention to 165 years of residential school experiences (1831-1996). For residential school survivor Phyllis Webstad, the severing of the threads connecting her to family, community, and culture began in 1973, when the beautiful orange shirt she wore to her first day of school was stripped from her and never seen again. The removal of the orange shirt was the first of a series of destructive methods enforced to deplete her sense of self-worth, erase her culture, and suppress her spirit. Her story is just one of the experiences described by countless survivors, but many others did not live to tell their own story.

Orange Shirt Day is intended to raise awareness and acknowledge the harms of the past. This day can spark initiatives to weave reconciliation into education throughout the year and the years to come, thus contributing to a more just society

How can children adapt and do more than survive in neighbourhoods where violence is common? How can they learn in schools where teachers have given up on them? This challenging documentary follows the successful work of Lorna Williams, who set out to help Indigenous children in Canada who are dropping out of school, losing hope, and committing suicide in terrifying numbers. Her search led her to Reuven Feuerstein, an Israeli psychologist who began his work with the children of the Holocaust.

This documentary follows two Mohawk girls on their journey to become Mohawk women. Friends since childhood, Kaienkwinehtha and Kasennakohe are members of the traditional community of Akwesasne on the U.S./Canada border. Together, they undertake a four-year rite of passage for adolescents, called Ohero:kon, or "under the husk." The ceremony had been nearly extinct, a casualty of colonialism and intergenerational trauma; revived in the past decade by two traditional leaders, it has since flourished. UNDER THE HUSK is a personal story of a traditional practice challenging young girls spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically, shaping the women they become.

A bittersweet story of how a people survived. Seventy-five years ago the nobility of the Kwakwaka'wakw of the Pacific Northwest Coast, chose a young man, secluded him from the authorities when his peers were sent to Residential School. The elders trained him in every aspect of the culture and traditions of his people. Today, caught between two worlds, he is needed more than ever by his people to reclaim their teachings. This is a story of hope, courage and endurance.

In this award-winning documentary, Cecilia Fire Thunder- the first female President of the Oglala Sioux tribe, defies a proposed South Dakota law criminalizing all abortions, with no exceptions for rape or incest, by threatening to build a women's clinic on the sovereign territory of the reservation. She ignites a political firestorm that sets off a chain reaction in the lives of three young Lakotas on the Pine Ridge Reservation, forcing each of them to make choices that define who they are and the kind of adults they will become.

Heenetiineyoo3eihiiho' (Language Healers) is a documentary that tells the story of Native Americans who are striving to revitalize their languages. From Alaska to Oklahoma and Wisconsin to Montana, we witness stories about the importance of saving Native American languages and meet some of the people who are working hard to heal these national treasures. Language Healers is one of the first films to focus upon the work the broader Native community is doing now to revitalize their languages.

Zuya means "the journey" in the Sioux language. Ariel shares her journey of walking in two worlds in this film that she made.

Why does Reconciliation matter? Rosie breaks it down for us.

Traditional healing is part of the way towards real Reconciliation. Watch this film by Raymond Caplin.

The trauma and effects of residential schools echos through generations to this day. Learn how communities are mending these scars.

At her residential school, Magit Poulette's chore was dusting the baseboard with a rag. She would later use rags to make herself a doll to play with and cherish. Hear Magit's story and learn her truth.

Jasmine Smith speaks about growing up two-spirited.

There were many powerful moments from our #OrangeShirtDay event. One of them was Shauntelle Dick-Charleson's slam poem "I Was There" about intergenerational survivors of residential schools.

Presents the personal stories of two elderly survivors: one of the Holocaust, and one of the Canadian residential school system.

Describes the use of traditional herbal medicine by Saik'uz elder Sophie Thomas. We watch her gather the raw materials for the medicines that she dispenses for free, and she expresses her concern about the damage to the forest caused by clearcutting, as well as the environmental impact of the damming of the Nechako River. Represents the rhythm of Thomas's life through the cycle of seasons, and shows her compassion for her fellow man and love for Mother Earth.

In the language of the Squamish Nation, Cease Wyss was given the name 'T'Uy'Tanat', meaning "Woman who travels by canoe to gather medicines for all people." In director Kamala Todd's lyrical portrait, Wyss reveals the remarkable healing powers of plants growing among the sprawling urban streets of downtown Vancouver. Whether it's the secret curl of a fiddlehead, the gentleness of comfrey, or the blood red streaks of frog leaf, plants carry with them millennia of wisdom, communicated through colour, texture and form. Cease Wyss has been listening to this unspoken language, and is now passing this ancient and intimate sense of connection to her own daughter, Senaqwila.

Five Native American women from diverse tribal backgrounds tell moving stories, from their lives and cultural memory that concern wellness - physical, emotional, mental and spiritual - and the connection of Native women through shared experience and cultural legacy. That legacy enables them to merge traditional ways of living and healing with contemporary life.

Three aboriginal survivors--Rhonda overcame weight and addiction problems through yoga and now shares yoga with others. A Cree man uses drama workshops to help youth address issues such as drug and sexual abuse. A young cartoonist created comic books to raise awareness about suicide, diabetes, and sexual health.

Seventy-five years ago the nobility of the Kwakwaka'wakw of the Pacific Northwest Coast chose a young man, secluded him from the authorities when his peers were sent to residential school, and trained him in every aspect of the culture and tradition of his people. Today, caught between two worlds, he is needed more than ever by his people to reclaim their teachings. Adam Dick or Kwaxisistala is the Clan Chief of the origin story of his nation and the last orally trained Potlatch Speaker of his people.