
In 1921 the Kwakiut'l people of Alert Bay, British Columbia, held their last secret potlatch. In 1980 at Alert Bay, the U'mista Cultural Centre (U'mista means "something of great value that has come back") opened its doors to receive and house the cultural treasures which were seized decades earlier and only then returned to the people. The center also took up activities such as recording stories told by elders so that some part of the past would always be alive and teaching children about their heritage in order to make them feel connected to their ancestors. This film documents the cultural significance of these events for today's Kwakiut'l people. It is an eloquent testimony to the persistence and complexity of Kwakiut'l society and to the struggle for redefining cultural identity for them.
Robert Joseph

Tenho Fé
2022

From Abdul To Leila
2024

People of the Potlatch
1944

The Navajos: Children of the Gods
1957

The Water Dwellers
1963

Out of the Interior: Survival of the small-town cinema in British Columbia

𝗦𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗮 𝗔𝗻𝗮: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗯 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗹𝗮
2023

Q'eros: The Shape of Survival
1979

Train leaves two towns
2016

The Matrix: Generation
2023

Tawai: A Voice from the Forest
2017

Punk is not vraiment dead ?!
2023