5 Must-Watch Films Covering the Intersection of Native American History and Food

Earlier this fall, I coordinated panels and off-screen events for the FoodxFilm Festival. As Panels+Events Producer, I curated a program of events that brought together filmmakers, policy leaders, activists, and farmers to provide festival goers with an access point to the discussions swirling around our global community’s most pressing food justice challenges. This work hit home the importance of storytelling and film as a tool to facilitate conversations that more people need to be privy to - whether that’s because they’re being kept out of schools, or not acknowledged with the urgency they deserve.

One such conversation that was a mainstay throughout most of the festival events was the historic manipulation of foodways as a tool to subjugate and marginalize Indigenous communities across the Americas. This Native American Heritage Month, as we continue to celebrate the community leaders and organizations preserving Native food traditions and environmental stewardship across the Americas, we must also recognize and acknowledge the history that has necessitated these efforts.

I believe that film and television are powerful mediums to create and demand real-time insight into the lived realities we tend to forget or ignore - this is one of the reasons I began developing POINT OF ORIGIN. With this perspective in mind, I’ve put together a list of five powerful films that can serve as a starting point to understand the roots and histories from which the push for Native food sovereignty, tradition protection, and resistance has grown. 

GATHER

GATHER is a documentary sharing the stories of Native American communities reclaiming their spiritual, cultural, and political identities through food sovereignty after centuries of political and cultural genocide. Weaving through both past and present with powerful storytelling and stunning cinematography, GATHER shows the power of preserving tradition as a tool of resistance and an act of love for the planet. The film can currently be viewed on iTunes, Amazon, and Vimeo-on-Demand with its recent release on Netflix earlier this month. Check out the FoodxFilm Festival post-screening conversation with Director Sanjay Rawal here.

Photo Credit: Gather

BISONHEAD

BISONHEAD is a documentary short film following a Ponderai family as they embark on a controversial journey to exercise their treaty hunting rights. BISONHEAD provides insight into the persistent, systemic marginalization of indigenous communities and culture in the American West. Bisonhead’s imagery guides viewers through the realities of preserving tradition in a society with a legacy of unacknowledged history. This short can be viewed on Vimeo. Check out the FoodxFilm post-screening conversation with filmmaker Elizabeth Lo.

Photo Credit: Bisonhead & NoBudge

SEEDS OF HOPE

Seeds of Hope is an eye-opening documentary telling the story of Native Hawaiian communities advocating for a return to traditional Hawaiian growing systems in the face of the islands’ increasing dependence on food imports. Seeds of Hope is an older film with remarkable lessons for the challenges we are confronting now; as we watch the supply chain crisis grow more dire, the rising cost of shipping food will hit import-dependent communities the hardest. The film covers extensively the history and power of local, indigenous food systems prior to US occupation. The 57-minute PBS broadcast version of this film can be viewed here on Youtube.

Photo Credit: Seeds of Hope

RETURN

RETURN is a documentary short following the stories of Native American women across the continent as they seek to reclaim traditional foodways as a means to combat health inequalities in their communities. Both revealing and heart-warming, RETURN draws attention to the links between food marginalization and modern day health epidemics while showing a way forward through food sovereignty and preserving tradition. Learn more and watch the trailer via the RETURN website.

Photo Credit: Return

THIS CHEF KEEPS THE FLAVORS OF ANCIENT MEXICO ALIVE

“This Chef” is a micro-documentary by the Great Big Story sharing the story of Abigail Mendoza Ruiz, a chef in Mexico working to preserve and uplift the indigenous Zapotecan food traditions in Oaxaca. “This Chef” is a source of both historical insight and culinary inspiration through Abigail’s story. Watch the piece here on Youtube.

Photo Credit: Great Big Story