MISC and the Indigenous Studies Program held a film screening of the documentary, 鈥淟ii Michif Niiyanaan:听We听Are听M茅tis鈥� with special guest, Christine听Welsh, producer and writer. The film was followed by a panel discussion with Christine听Welsh and Scott Berthelette, moderated by Les Sabiston, an audience Q&A, and an informal reception with drinks and appetizers.
About the film:
Lii Michif Niiyanaan:听We听Are听M茅tis听- Contemporary M茅tis voices speaking their truth.
In this one-hour documentary, M茅tis elders, artists, activists and scholars examine the unique history of M茅tis people in Canada and share their diverse perspectives on what it means to be M茅tis today.听Lii Michif Niiyanaan听is a love letter to the courage, determination and resilient spirit of the M茅tis nation and a call for all Canadians to embrace the richness of their shared history.
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Christine听Welsh听(Producer, Writer) is M茅tis with roots in the historic Red River Settlement and the Qu鈥橝ppelle Valley of southern Saskatchewan. She is an award-winning documentary filmmaker whose films include听Women in the Shadows听(1991),听Keepers of the Fire听(1994),听The Story of the Coast Salish Knitters听(2000), and the NFB feature documentary听Finding Dawn听(NFB 2006), one of the earliest calls to action on the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada. Her 1995 film听Kuper Island: Return to the Healing Circle听(with Peter C. Campbell) featured some of the first public testimony from survivors of Canada鈥檚 Indian residential school system and is now part of the permanent archive of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Ms.听Welsh鈥檚 films have been broadcast nationally on CBC, CTV and APTN, and have been featured at major film festivals in Canada, the U.S., France, Australia and New Zealand, as听well as the 51st听United Nations Commission on the Status of Women in New York. In 2009, her body of work was honoured with the WIFTV (Women in Film and Television Vancouver) Artistic Achievement Award for filmmaking excellence in telling women鈥檚 stories. She is also an Associate Professor Emerita (Gender Studies) at the University of Victoria.
