Related Films

An Invitation to Wonder: Waubesa Wetlands (WIP)

2023 • USA • 66 min • Ben Albert

Filmmaker in Attendance, Family Friendly, First Time Filmmaker, Work in Progress, Staff Pick, Making Waves Recipient

Guided by the wisdom of his grandfather, a young filmmaker journeys through the mysterious wetland in his grandparent’s backyard. Navigating the challenges of this environment, the film uncovers the life, secrets, and importance of wetlands in a way that must be seen to be believed. 

Um Yes, Hello

2021 • United States • 28 min • Thomas Sawyer

Filmmaker in Attendance, Subject in Attendance, First Time Filmmaker, Michigan Premiere, Family Friendly, Staff Pick

Geo Rutherford is a TikTok creator and educator, whose viral videos about the world’s strangest and most breathtaking bodies of water have been seen by millions. Diving deeper into her complex relationship with science and education, this documentary follows the artist as she sifts through The Great Lakes’ detritus, gathering found objects to create her largest installation to date.

Women of Wampum

2025 • Canada • 11 min • Dr. Kelsey Leonard and Alejandro Miranda

Filmmaker in Attendance, Subject in Attendance, Family Friendly, Michigan Premiere, First Time Filmmaker

Across the salt-sprayed shores of Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard, a gathering of Indigenous women comes together to rematriate wampum as a living system of justice, truth, and inherent relationship. Through practices of teaching, making, and collective remembrance, the film examines how patriarchal disruption, colonial extraction, and climate-driven coastal change threaten not only living shores but the relationships that sustain them.