CELEBRATING INDIGENOUS STORYTELLING IN FILM
The Sundance Film Festival has had a profound impact on independent cinema, including supporting and creating space for Indigenous storytelling through film. From the launch of the Native Forum in 1994 to the many fellowships and programs geared toward uplifting Indigenous artists—Sundance continues to be a force in driving narrative change and championing Indigenous voices in the film industry.
In 2023 IllumiNative launched the inaugural Indigenous House—a vibrant celebration of Native and Indigenous creativity, strength, and culture.
2024 INDIGENOUS WATCH LIST
Each year, the Sundance Film Festival celebrates dozens of independent films. This year, seven Indigenous-led films, across 6 different categories, will be featured at Sundance between January 18th and 28th. Online screenings available January 25th – 28th.
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WHY SUNDANCE MATTERS
Playing a Transformative Role in Independent Cinema
The Sundance Film Festival is a key hub for independent films, showcasing emerging trends, fostering networking, and providing a platform for discussions on film and technology. The films featured each year at Sundance gain a better chance to secure deals with major studios and distributors, increasing the likelihood the films will reach mass audiences through streaming services or theaters.
Providing a Turning Point in Indigenous Films
“Smoke Signals,” directed by Chris Eyre in 1998, made history as the first feature film produced, directed, and written by Indigenous artists to receive a commercial release. Its debut at Sundance, where it clinched the Audience Award, marked a significant milestone in Indigenous filmmaking.
Photo Credit: Anna Webber/Getty Images for IllumiNative
Creating Space for Indigenous Storytelling
In 1994 Sundance began the Native Forum, providing a platform specifically for Indigenous filmmakers to share their stories and perspectives while showcasing Native films. This programming later transformed to what we now know as the Sundance Indigenous Program, which provides Indigenous storytellers support through labs, fellowships, and gatherings.
Photo Credit: Josué Rivas/ INDÍGENA
Supporting Influencers of Narrative Change
Erica Tremblay (Seneca Cayuga), Sydney Freeland (Diné), Sterlin Harjo (Seminole/Muscogee), and Billy Luther (Diné/Hopi/Laguna Pueblo) are some of the notable individuals actively reshaping Indigenous narratives, all of whom have received support or participated in Sundance programming.
Photo Courtesy of Sundance Org
Launching IllumiNative’s Indigenous House
Illuminative’s Indigenous House at Sundance was founded in 2023 and is a vibrant celebration of Native creatives and filmmakers, showcasing their contributions and resilience. It’s a shared space for Native and non-Native communities to learn, be inspired, and acknowledge challenges in the film industry.
INDIGENOUS FILMS AT SUNDANCE
(We’ll be adding more years soon!)
2024
Sugarcane
dir. Julian Brave NoiseCat / Emily Kassie
The Moogai
dir. Jon Bell
Bay of Herons
dir. Jared James Lank (Mi’kmaq)
Lea Tupu’anga / Mother Tongue
dir. Vea Mafile’o (Kiwi/Tongan)
Ekbeh
dir. Mariah Eli Hernandez-Fitch (Houma)
Winding Path
dir. Alexandra Lazarowich (Cree) / Ross Kauffman
2023
Bad Behaviour
dir. Alice Englert / prod. Desray Armstrong (Te-Aitanga-a-Hauiti & Ngāti Porou)
Watch Trailer
Bad Press
dir. Rebecca Landsberry-Baker (Muscogee [Creek])
Watch Trailer
Fancy Dance
dir. Erica Tremblay (Seneca–Cayuga)
Gush
dir. Fox Maxy (Payómkawichum and Mesa Grande Band of Mission Indians)
Watch Trailer
Twice Colonized
prod. Emile Hertling Péronard (Greenlandic Inuit) / Alethea Arnaquq-Baril (Inuit) / Stacey Aglok Macdonald (Inuit)
Watch Trailer
Murder in Big Horn
dir. Razelle Benally (Oglala Lakota and Navajo)
Watch Online
Hawaiki
dir. Nova Paul (Te Uri Ro Roi and Te Parawhau/Nga Puhi)
Watch on Native Shorts
Headdress
dir. Taietsarón:sere Leclaire (Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk) and Mi’kmaq)
I Am Home
dir. Kymon Greyhorse (Navajo & Tongan)
Sunflower Siege Engine
dir. Sky Hopinka (Ho-Chunk Nation/Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians)
Watch Online
Unborn Biru
dir. Inga Elin Marakatt (Sámi)
Watch on PBS
2022
This is Not a Ceremony – VR Experience
dir. Ahnahktsipiitaa (Colin Van Loon)(Piikani Nation)
Watch Trailer
Every Day in Kaimukī
dir. Alika Tengan
Watch Online
ᎤᏕᏲᏅ (UDEYONV) (WHAT THEY’VE BEEN TAUGHT)
dir. Brit Hensel (Cherokee)
Watch Online
The Headhunter’s Daughter
dir. Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan
Streaming Online
On the Morning You Wake (To The End of the World)
Lead Artist: Dr. Jamaica Heolimeleikalani Osorio (Kānaka Maoli) / Mike Brett / Steve Jamison / Arnaud Colinart / Pierre Zandrowicz
VR Experience
Long Line of Ladies
dir. Shaandiin Tome (Diné) / Rayka Zehtabchi
Watch Online
Kicking the Clouds
dir. Sky Hopinka (Ho-Chunk Nation/Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians)
Watch Online
Atua
XR Lead Artist: Tanu Gago (Samoan) / Jermaine Dean (Māori)
Learn More
Maidenhood
dir. Xóchitl Enríquez Mendoza (Zapoteca)
Watch Trailer
2021
The Fourfold
dir. Alisi Telengut
Watch Online
This Is The Way We Rise
dir. Ciara Lacey
Watch Online
Wild Indian
dir. Lyle Mitchell Corbine Jr. (Ojibwe)
Watch Online
Coming Home In The Dark
dir. James Ashcroft
Watch on Netflix
2020
Charter
dir. Amanda Kernell
Watch Online
Little Chief
dir. Erica Tremblay
Watch Online
Małni – towards the ocean, towards the shore
Watch Online
Lichen
dir. Lisa Jackson (Anishinaabe)
Watch Trailer
Now Is The Time
dir. Christopher Auchte (Haida)
Watch Online
2019
Top End Wedding
dir. Wayne Blair
Stream on Peacock
Buy/Rent on Amazon
MERATA: How Mum Decolonised The Screen
dir. Hepi Mita / prod. Chelsea Winstanley, Te Arepa Kahi
Watch Trailer
Words from a Bear
dir. Jeffrey Palmer (Kiowa)
Buy/Rent on Amazon
Fainting Spells
dir. Sky Hopinka (Ho-Chunk)
Watch Online
Shinaab, Pt. II
dir. Lyle Mitchell Corbine Jr. (Ojibwe)
Fast Horse
dir. Alexandra Lazarowich (Cree)
Watch Online
Throat Singing in Kangirsuk
dir. Eva Kaukai, Manon Chamberland
Watch Online
Birds in the Earth
dir. Marja Helander (Sámi)
Watch Excerpt
2018
Genesis 2.0
dir. Christian Frei and Maxim Arbugaev (Yakut/Buryat)
Watch Online
We the Animals
dir. Jeremiah Zagar / prod. Jeremy Yaches, Christina D. King (Creek and Seminole Nations), Andrew Goldman, Paul Mezey
Stream Online
Sweet Country
dir. Warwick Thornton (Kaytej Nation) / writer. Stephen McGregor, David Tranter (Alyawarra Nation)
Stream Online
Mud (Hashtł’ishnii)
dir. Shaandiin Tome (Diné)
Watch Online
The Violence of a Civilization without Secrets
dir. Adam Khalil, Zack Khalil (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, Jackson Polys (Tlingit)
Watch Online
Nuuca
dir. Michelle Latimer (Métis/Algonquin)
Watch Online
I Like Girls
Watch Online
Akicita: The Battle of Standing Rock
dir. Cody Lucich, (Estom Yumeka Maidu Tribe of Enterprise Rancheria)
