Surviving Columbus

Run, Simon, Run

1970

A Papago Indian returns to his reservation after a prison term and searches for his brother's killer.

Two Spirits

2009

Fred Martinez was a Navajo youth slain at the age of 16 by a man who bragged to his friends that he 'bug-smashed a fag'. But Fred was part of an honored Navajo tradition - the 'nadleeh', or 'two-spirit', who possesses a balance of masculine and feminine traits.

Tantoo Cardinal

2021

A moving portrait of actress Tantoo Cardinal, travelling through time and across the many roles she’s played, capturing her strength and her impact—and how she shattered the glass ceiling and survived.

Yakutia — Between The Worlds

2024

A documentary road movie. Traveling across his homeland, the filmmaker explores what Yakut cinema is, and what it means to the Sakha people and to himself.

Lakota Nation vs. United States

2022

Poet Layli Long Soldier crafts a searing portrait of her Oyate’s connection to the Black Hills, through first contact and broken treaties to the promise of the Land Back movement, in this lyrical testament to resilience of a nation.

Indian Memento

1967

A visit to the "Indians of Canada" pavilion at Expo 67, Montréal. Inside there are Indigenous artifacts, but even more arresting are the printed placards that tell the story of the Indigenous peoples in North America, written without rancor but recalling what their contact with European settlers has cost in freedom of movement, in loss of land, and in loss of health of body and spirit.

The Third Way

2014

Documentary film about Catholic Church teachings about homosexuality. Describes the "third way", the lifestyle lead by orthodox gay Catholics practicing celibacy out of personal choice, an often overlooked demographic in the debates about homosexuality in the Church.

Old New Mexico

1940

This Traveltalk series short takes viewers on a tour of old New Mexico. Starting in Santa Fe, the oldest state capitol in the USA, the city existed long before European migration. It's unique architecture is its most prominent feature. There are several archaeological sites trying to date when Indians first settled in the area. Seven percent of the population are of Indian origin. Near Taos is the onetime home of Kit Carson whose grave is one of the sacred shrines of New Mexico. The Navajo live on their 14 million acre reservation and continue their traditional way of life.

Hock E Aye Vi Edgar Heap of Birds: Family - An Oral History Project

2025

In preparation for his first major retrospective at the Oklahoma Contemporary in 2025, Hock E Aye Vi Edgar Heap of Birds reveals thoughts, formal approaches, and philosophies toward various works, including the oral history details behind his new wall installation work, Family, that continues his practice of 'primary' and 'ghost' printing.

Nitassinan

More than an attachment to our territory, the Innu live a filial relationship with Nitassinan, our ancestral homeland. For so many generations, the land has nourished, cared for and raised us. It has inspired our language, our culture, our lifeway and our vision of the world. Throughout the seasons, our ancestors criss-crossed the territory on foot, by canoe or on snowshoes. They knew every river, lake, or stream; every mountain, hill or bog; every camp, trail and portage path. Nomadism forged our people, and the film will record this journey and our history – past, present and future. And while it will attest to our vitality and resilience it is also – and above all – a tribute and a message of respect for the Earth.

Into Great Silence

2005

An intimate portrayal of the everyday lives of Carthusian monks of the Grande Chartreuse, high in the French Alps (Chartreuse Mountains). The idea for the film was proposed to the monks in 1984, but the Carthusians said they wanted time to think about it. The Carthusians finally contacted Gröning 16 years later to say they were now willing to permit Gröning to shoot the movie, if he was still interested.

Winnetou - The Secret of Silver Lake

2016

In the second part of the German remake of the Winnetou films, Winnetou's sister Nscho Tschi is kidnapped by a brutal crook who wants to find a mythical Apache treasure. Old Shatterhead and Winnetou get forced to search for the precious in the silver sea by their evil opponent El Mas Loco.