Filmmaker in Attendance, Michigan Premiere, Adult Language, Staff Pick
The city lifestyle left New York City artist Lala feeling hollow, forcing her to make the bold decision of uprooting herself and seeking solace in the untamed landscapes somewhere far west. Stripped of the familiar comforts of running water, electricity, and constant connectivity, she faces the daunting challenge of building a bountiful life from scratch.
Family Friendly, Michigan Premiere
From the Heartland is a candid depiction of American Agriculture and the rural towns reliant on its success. But when an industry’s ability to thrive is dependent on progress, how does a family farm discard their traditional practices to try something new and save the land?
World Premiere, Staff Pick
An examination of how two small sticks, randomly acquired in Minnesota’s north woods, have slowly transformed into treasured possessions.
Family Friendly
Step into the US’s largest urban sugarbush in Detroit’s sprawling Rouge Park with the Detroit Sugarbush Project.
Filmmaker in Attendance, Subject in Attendance, Michigan Premiere, World Premiere, Staff Pick
“It’s Time” is a poetic 3-minute film set in early spring Illinois. Through stunning visuals and lyrical narration, it gives voice to nature. The tree’s awakening becomes a metaphor for environmental awareness. This cinematic ode aspires to plant seeds of change, encouraging viewers to listen to nature’s whispered warnings and become stewards of our shared environment.
Family Friendly
In South Memphis, married artists Bertram Williams and Talibah Safiya transform their creative practices into vehicles for a higher purpose. Enter Mama’s Sundry, a collaborative movement fostering wellness and sustainability through education, service initiatives and a neighborhood garden that produces fresh fruit and vegetables within a community that’s long been designated a food desert.
Filmmaker in Attendance, Family Friendly, Subject in Attendance
Interviews with tribal knowledge holders about Manoomin (wild rice) during a 6 day workshop/ gathering in Baraga, Michigan
Filmmaker in Attendance, Michigan Premiere
There’s always been only a few special places in the world where wild rice (known as manoomin to the Ojibwe people), grows. Which made it troubling when manoomin stopped growing in the early 2000’s at Spur Lake, a 113 acre lake in Oneida County, Wisconsin. A group of conservation partners who have come together to bring wild rice back to Spur Lake because of its environmental and cultural importance.
Filmmaker in Attendance, Subject in Attendance, Family Friendly, World Premiere
The Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians is the largest indigenous tribe east of the Mississippi and has been stewarding the fisheries of their Great Lakes territory for generations. This project explores the importance of the fishery to the tribe and how they’re working to ensure a healthy fishery for the next seven generations.
Filmmaker in Attendance, Family Friendly
The NMU Volleyball team is known for big action when they serve, bump, set, and spike on the court. Off the court, they serve as an example for how we can make changes to take better care of our environment.
Filmmaker in Attendance, Subject in Attendance, Staff Pick
THE FISH THIEF: A Great Lakes Mystery, formerly known as RELENTLESS, is a captivating mystery that engages the audience in a battle for the survival of the largest freshwater ecosystem on Earth, the Great Lakes. This fascinating true story, narrated by Oscar-winning actor J.K. Simmons, follows remarkable people tackling the mystery of why the most prized fish nearly vanished. The crash destroyed jobs and businesses, and devastated towns, tribal communities, and First Nations across the region.
Filmmaker in Attendance, Family Friendly, Michigan Premiere, First Time Filmmaker
To Be A Good Home follows three women who farm and steward land in northern Minnesota. Kaitlyn is a descendant of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, tending her plot at the place of the gardens, Gitigaaning. Starr is an urban farmer, feeding her community near the shores of Gichigami. Hannah is a regenerative farmer, building soil and caring for her herd along Medicine Creek.
Filmmaker in Attendance, Subject in Attendance, Family Friendly, Michigan Premiere
Spearfishing workshops for all ages facilitated by the Keweenaw Bay Indian community Natural Resource Department.