Tracy Rector

The Navel of the World

“Te Pito o Te Henua” (The Navel of the World) tells the story of the community behind Rapa Nui’s largest and most colorful annual Indigenous celebration, the Tāpati Rapa Nui Festival. Honoring ancient rites and competitions, Rapa Nui families participate in nine days of athletic feats, cultural demonstrations and ceremonies paying respect to the land, water and other natural beings of the island. They also crown a Queen to represent her people for a year throughout Polynesia and on the world stage. The film traces the journey of 19-year-old candidate Vaitiare and her family as they join work to earn her the crown and represent this small but well-known island as its people fight for increased autonomy and recognition on the world stage. Through intimate character portraits, behind-the-curtain moments and heartfelt musical performances, “Te Pito o Te Henua” reveals the true meaning of Tāpati and the deep connections the Rapa Nui share with their lands and waters.

Tentsítewahkwe

Following the flow of the seasons, Jessica Shenandoah revives the land-based traditions of our Mohawk ancestors that colonizers nearly erased from our memories.

Bad River

Wisconsin's tribe's ongoing fight to protect Lake Superior for future generations. "Bad River" shows the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa's long history of activism and resistance in the context of continuing legal battles with Enbridge Energy over its Line 5 oil pipeline. The Line 5 pipeline has been operating on 12 miles of the Bad River Band's land with expired easements for more than a decade. The Band and the Canadian company have been locked in a legal battle over the pipeline since 2019.

Outta the Muck

Family, football and history come to life in an intimate portrait of the Dean family, longtime residents of the historic town of Pahokee, Florida. We take a journey back home, with filmmaker Ira McKinley, to the land of sugarcane, as he reconnects with his niece Bridget and nephew Alvin and explores their shared family history that spans seven generations. Told through stories that transcend space and time, Outta The Muck presents a community, and a family, that resists despair with love, remaining fiercely self-determined, while forging its own unique narrative of Black achievement.

What They’ve Been Taught

This film explores expressions of reciprocity in the Cherokee world, brought to life through a story told by an elder and first language speaker.

What They’ve Been Taught

This film explores expressions of reciprocity in the Cherokee world, brought to life through a story told by an elder and first language speaker.

Rooted

Mia Kami wrote and directed “Rooted” to reflect the deep connection between people of the Pacific, their land, sea, and their identity. The video portrays a diverse group of strong, beautiful, and creative people with many stories to tell, who are rooted in their place, culture, and traditions.

Without a Whisper - Konnón:kwe

"Without a Whisper" is the untold story of how Indigenous women influenced the early suffragists in their fight for freedom and equality. Mohawk Clan Mother Louise Herne and Professor Sally Roesch Wagner shake the foundation of the established history of the women’s rights movement in the United States. They join forces on a journey to shed light on the hidden history of the influence of Haudenosaunee Women on the women’s rights movement, possibly changing this historical narrative forever.

Sky Aelans

Directed by nine Indigenous Solomon Island filmmakers, this is both a love letter and lament for the eponymous traditional lands.

Standing Above the Clouds

Standing Above the Clouds follows Native Hawaiian mother-daughter activists as they stand to protect their sacred mountain Mauna Kea from the building of the world’s largest telescope.

The Boxers of Brule

Devastated by her best friend's suicide, a young Lakota woman creates a girls' boxing team with urgent hope that sport, sisterhood and tradition will guide youth toward a safer path.

Thin Places

The story of two sisters and how their love transcends this life and the next.

What She Carries

Exploring the revitalization of traditional birthing practices in Indigenous communities across Turtle Island, the film blends personal stories of pregnancy, birth, loss, and renewal, revealing the vast and diverse experiences of women within the life-giving cycle.