In addition to the feature film Night Raiders which will be showcased and discussed as part of the Celebrating Indigenous Stories livestream, the bonus films below provide an additional avenue to have a conversation around the themes of racism, oppression, equity, and justice with your class in even greater depth. These short films represent the work of Indigenous filmmakers from across the country. It’s your choice if, when, and how you’d like to incorporate them into your courses.
To request links for any of these bonus films, please complete the Order Form below.
If you have already worked with REEL CANADA before, please refer to one of our teacher newsletters, or send an email to [email protected] to ask for your personalized form. (This will ensure that your registration is logged with your existing REEL CANADA account, and will also make it quicker and easier for you to complete the form).
ASSINI (13 min)
2015. Director & Writer: Gail Maurice (Cree/Métis)
Seven-year-old Assini and her friends often play Cowboys and Indians. But when Assini discovers that she herself is an “Indian,” the game takes a new turn.
CHRISTMAS AT MOOSE FACTORY (13 min)
1971. Director: Alanis Obomsawin (Abenaki)
Legendary documentarian Alanis Obomsawin’s debut film is a first-hand look at the experience of children in a residential school during Christmastime.
FOUR FACES OF THE MOON (13min)
2016. Director: Amanda Strong (Michif)
In this intricate and stunning stop-motion animation, a young filmmaker travels back through time, encountering pivotal moments in her family’s history and strengthening her connections to her Métis, Cree and Anishinaabe ancestors.
LOST MOCCASIN (12 min)
2018. Director: Roger Boyer (Saulteaux/Ojibway)
Bradford Bilodeau tells the story of how he reconnected with his birth family due to being raised apart from them after his forced adoption as part of the Sixties Scoop.
SAVAGE (6 min)
2009. Director: Lisa Jackson (Anishinaabe)
This “residential school musical” uses song and dance to depict a little girl’s dehumanizing journey into the residential school system, as well as her mother’s pain.
SHIN-CHI’S CANOE (13 min)
2018. Director: Allan Hopkins (N’quatqua)
Through his father’s gift of a secret and tiny hand-carved cedar canoe, an Indigenous child discovers the strength and resilience to endure his first year at a Residential School.
SISTERS AND BROTHERS (3 min)
2015. Director: Kent Monkman (Cree)
In a critique of Canada’s colonial history, this short film draws parallels between the annihilation of the bison in the 1890s and the devastation inflicted on the Indigenous population by the residential school system. This film is part of Souvenir, a series of four films addressing Indigenous identity and representation by reworking material in the NFB’s archives.
WAKENING (8 min)
2013. Director: Danis Goulet (Cree/Métis)
Set in the near future, a lone Cree wanderer roams through an urban wasteland overseen by a brutal military occupation, searching for an ancient and dangerous creature.
WAPAWEKKA (16 min)
2010. Director: Danis Goulet (Cree/Métis)
Josh and his father visit their family cabin in Saskatchewan for the last time, confronting the generational differences between their Cree heritage and Josh’s urban lifestyle.
WHEN THE CHILDREN LEFT (11 min)
2019. Director: Charlene Moore (Cree/Saulteaux)
With no high school in their community, the people of Shoal Lake 40 First Nation must send their children away from home at only 14 years old in order to access secondary educational opportunities.
ZAASAAKWE (5 min)
2017. Director: Madison Thomas (Ojibwe/Saulteaux)
A powerful call to action to all Indigenous people to shout for joy and celebrate their identity.