Brandon Wilson’s Spirit of a Nation: The Places We Belong

Three NSI IndigiDocs documentaries, produced through the program in 2022, will air on documentary Channel and CBC Gem starting June 1.

Through the NSI IndigiDocs training program, Indigenous filmmakers develop a short documentary idea into a 10-minute finished film. The program has helped develop the skills of over 70 Indigenous storytellers throughout its 10 editions.

The 2022 documentaries made their broadcast premiere in a one-hour special on APTN earlier this year. Two of the films also had success on the film festival circuit.

Kokum, with love. from Kim Stadfeld screened at imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival, Available Light Film Festival and received the Manitoba Short Film Audience Choice Award at the Gimli International Film Festival. It also premiered internationally at Native Women in Film Festival in Los Angeles.

Brandon Wilson’s Spirit of a Nation: The Places We Belong premiered at Northwest Fest in Edmonton, Calgary Justice Film Festival and Okotoks International Film Festival.

The films will air on documentary Channel on June 1 at 8 a.m., 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. CST. They will also be available to stream on CBC Gem beginning June 1:

Kokum, with love., Kim Stadfeld (Ontario)

• • • To understand her family roots, Kim searches for truth and answers about her Indigenous grandmother Flora Bear’s life.

Spirit of a Nation: The Places We Belong, Brandon Wilson (Alberta)

• • • A participatory and visual look at the sacred and healing power land and community holds for members of the Fort McKay First Nations, told through the perspective of Cree member Brandon Wilson.

Winnipeg’s North End: A Food Desert, Marsha Knight (Manitoba)

• • • The challenges of people in Winnipeg’s North End to provide basic and culturally-based food for their families amid the barriers of transportation, economics and no full-scale grocery stores in the area.

A special screening of Indigenous Dads, from 2021 NSI IndigiDocs participant Peter Brass, will also be included in the broadcast.

Check your local listings and find out when you can watch these films.

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NSI IndigiDocs 2020-22 is funded by Program Partners APTN, Manitoba Sport, Culture & Heritage and RBC Emerging Artists Project; Indigenous Training Programs Partner Directors Guild of Canada (DGC); Boot Camp Presenting Sponsor Manitoba Film & Music; Strategic Sponsor documentary Channel; Supporting Sponsors Telefilm Canada, Super Channel, A&E Networks; Provincial / Territorial Sponsors Manitoba Film & Music, Ontario Creates, Northwest Territories Film Commission, Creative Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan Media Production Industry Association (SMPIA), Yukon Media Development and the Alberta Government; Industry Partner the National Film Board of Canada, Entertainment Partners; Industry Supporters imagineNATIVE Film & Media Arts Festival, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival; and Service Sponsors Line 21 Media, iSplice Films. NSI Core Funders are Manitoba Sport, Culture & Heritage and the City of Winnipeg through the Winnipeg Arts Council.