Yintah

YINTAH, meaning “land” in the Wet’suwet’en language, tells the story of an Indigenous nation asserting sovereignty. It is the story of the Wet’suwet’en people reoccupying their territory and resisting the construction of multiple pipelines. 

SYNOPSIS

YINTAH, meaning “land”, is a feature-length documentary on the Wet’suwet’en nation’s fight for sovereignty. Spanning more than a decade, the film follows Howilhkat Freda Huson and Sleydo’ Molly Wickham as their nation reoccupies and protects their ancestral lands from several of the largest fossil fuel companies on earth.

Theme(s): , Colonialism, Economy, Environnement, First nations, Human Rights, Social struggle

DETAILS

Director | , Brenda Michell, Jennifer Wickham, Michael Toledano
Year | , 2024
Country | , Canada
Duration | 125 minutes
Original language | , English, Witsuwit'en
Subtitles | , French and english
Sound design | Benoît Dame, Catherine Van Der Donckt
Music | Johannes Malfatti (Additional Music), Olivier Alary
Editing | Ryan Mullins
Camera | Alexandra Kotcheff, Dan Loan, Grace Burke, Jesse Freeston, Keir Knight, Melissa Cox, Sam Vinal
Cinematographer | Michael Toledano
Other | Freda Huson ((Main Protagonist), Molly Wickham (Main Protagonist)

DIRECTOR

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Brenda Michell

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Brenda Michell, Co-Director & Producer
Brenda Mitchell is Tsakë ze’ K‑eltiy of the Unist'ot'en people of the Wet'suwet'en Nation. She has lived in the Wet'suwet'en communities of Witset and Burns Lake all her life, and was groomed to participate in Wet'suwet'en governance from a young age. Brenda is trained as a Wet'suwet'en language instructor and has worked as a post-secondary education coordinator for the Lake Babine Nation Band for decades, and is currently the resident Elder, language teacher, and addictions counselor at the Unist’ot’en Healing Centre. Brenda is a grandmother of ten and this fight is about protecting the Yintah for her grandchildren. She believes that this film is an important way to tell her people’s story and listen to the words of her Grandmother Knedebeas who always told her children, “Don’t let no white man take my yintah.”

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Jennifer Wickham

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Jennifer Wickham, Co-Director & Producer, is Cas Yikh (Grizzly House) from the Gidimt’en (bear/wolf) clan of the Wet’suwet’en people. Jennifer grew up in and around Wet’suwet’en territory, and has actively participated in her nation’s governance system since 2008. Jen's background is in writing and Indigenous resurgence, with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Victoria and an Education degree from the University of Northern British Columbia. She has worked as an educator, a mental health advocate, and community support worker. She is a founding member of the Indigenous Life School on Wet’suwet’en territory. From 2018 to 2020, Jen worked as the Executive Director of the Witsuwit’en Language and Culture Society. Since 2018, and currently, Jen has been the Media Coordinator for the Gidimt’en Checkpoint.

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Michael Toledano

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Michael Toledano, Co-Director & Producer & Director of Photography
Michael Toledano is an award winning filmmaker and photojournalist based in British Columbia Canada. Michael’s work has been published by outlets including VICE, Al Jazeera America, and Democracy Now!, and has been shown across every major Canadian television news network. They are known for vibrant, ground-level documentation of social movements ranging from Black Lives Matter to the Wet’suwet’en resistance to pipelines.

CAREER

True False · Hot Docs · DOXA · Festival international Présence autochtone

PAST SCREENINGS

SCREENING 1

22 August 2024 at 20h00

Biosphère

A discussion with Jennifer Wickham (by zoom) will follow the screening.

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