Indigenous Cinema
Los Thuthanaka
VIFF is honoured to present the Canadian debut of experimental music duo Los Thuthanaka, whose spiraling Aymara rhythms, ceremonial textures, and psychedelic sounds combine into a transcendent live AV experience.
In Alaska
In Alaska follows Woody, an Inuk teen whose bullet pierces the Trans-Alaska Pipeline during a failed suicide attempt. Fleeing to Nunavut, he finds community and reconnects with the land and his Inuit roots, discovering what it means to be alive.
Turtle Island Rap
Taking us into the world of Indigenous hip-hop, this soulful doc profiles three up-and-comers in the genre. Exploring its subject’s personal lives as well as their career moves, the film is a work of complex human portraiture — and the music is terrific.
Aanikoobijigan [Ancestor/Great-Grandparent/Great-Grandchild]
In Aanikoobijigan, Indigenous repatriation specialists work to bring the remains and funerary objects of Ancestors home from institutional collections. This is a film shaped by memory, dignity, and a duty of care.
Nitassinan
Innu poet Joséphine Bacon and filmmaker Kim O’Bomsawin weave poetry and observation in Nitassinan, a lyrical portrait of the Innu people’s enduring bond with their ancestral land.
The Wind's Thirst
In The Wind’s Thirst, three Indigenous Wayuu guardians confront mining and energy corporations exploiting Colombia’s La Guajira desert to defend their water, sacred sites, and right to remain.
Daughters of the Forest
An immersive sci-fi documentary, Daughters of the Forest follows two Indigenous mycologists who are bridging modern science and visual storytelling to preserve Mexico’s fungi and forests.
Kikuyu Land
Kikuyu Land follows Mr. Mungai’s struggle to reclaim family land taken during the colonial era. Through personal stories and archival research, the film explores the enduring impact of land dispossession in Kenya.
Reclaim My Skin
A three-part documentary series that challenges stereotypes and authority while celebrating the resilience and resurgence of Indigenous female identity. Reclaim My Skin empowers Indigenous women and their allies with the knowledge of their true history.