Press Kit

Reciprocity Project Season Two

Seven Indigenous films from around the globe

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Reciprocity Project Season Two

Reciprocity Project invites global Indigenous filmmakers to center Indigenous perspectives about the reciprocal relationship between all beings — seen and unseen — and the lands we inhabit. Facing a climate crisis, the Reciprocity Project embraces Indigenous value systems that have bolstered communities since time immemorial.

In Season Two of this multimedia project, storytellers and community partners created films in response to a question: What does a 'return' to land, language, community, and reciprocal relationships mean to you and your community?

Producers | Taylor Hensel, Kavita Pillay, Adam Mazo, Tracy Rector

Executive Producer | Tracy Rector

Executive Producers for REI Co-op Studios | Hanna Boyd, Joe Crosby, Paolo Mottola

Co-Executive Producers | Hindou Ibrahim, Yo-Yo Ma, Cristina Mittermeier, Kiliii Yuyan

Producing Partners | Nia Tero and Upstander Project in association with REI Co-op Studios

Production Status | Premiering in early 2024

Technical Specifications

FILMS

Ma ŋaye ka Masaala a se ka Wɔmɛti (From God To Man) | Go to full press kit
Lansana Mansaray (Limba) | Sierra Leone

What does ‘return’ mean? Filmmaker Lansana Mansaray goes back to his ancestral village in this first-ever documentary about the Limba people of Sierra Leone.

Tentsítewahkwe | Go to full press kit
Katsitsionni Fox (Mohawk) | Haudenosaunee

Embodying the Mohawk value of Tentsítewahkwe, Jessica Shenandoah goes on a knowledge-gathering journey across all four seasons to reinvigorate the healing, land-based practices of her ancestral grandmothers, knowledge that boarding schools, forced religion, and land theft may have suppressed but could not destroy.

TAYAL FOREST CLUB | Go to full press kit
Laha Mebow (Tayal) | Taiwan

Is getting lost the best way to find yourself? In this coming-of-age tale from Taiwan’s first Indigenous female director, two Tayal youth learn to navigate life’s challenges by paying close attention to lessons that only the land can offer.

Tahnaanooku' | Go to full press kit
Justin Deegan (Mandan, Hidatsa, & Arikara Nation) | US

An artistic celebration of the environmental activism of Darline Deegan and her efforts to protect the land of her Indigenous community.

ENCHUKUNOTO (The Return) | Go to full press kit
Laissa Malih (Maasai) | Kenya

Laissa Malih — the first female Maasai filmmaker — returns to the community her parents left behind in this deeply personal look at how the lands of her forefathers are being reshaped by climate change.

ARMEA | Go to full press kit
Letila Mitchell (Rotuman) | Rotuma

Through music and dance, Rotuman artists work with their elders to create new ceremonies and renew and revitalize stories of land and ocean.

ÁHKUIN | Go to full press kit
Radio-JusSunná / Sunná Nousuniemi (Sámi) & Guhtur Niillas Rita Duomis / Tuomas Kumpulainen (Sámi) | Finland / Sápmi

A transcendent and playful documentary journey following three generations of a Sámi family united across time via joik - a distinct Sámi oral tradition that combines song, storytelling and reciprocity.

COLLABORATORS

Nia Tero is a US-based non-profit working in solidarity with Indigenous peoples and movements worldwide with a mission of securing Indigenous guardianship of vital ecosystems. Nia Tero is committed to an antiracist and inclusive culture centering Indigenous rights, wisdom, practices, worldviews, and protocols.

Upstander Project is a Boston-based non-profit that uses storytelling to amplify silenced narratives, develop upstander skills to challenge systemic injustice, and nurture compassionate, courageous relationships that honor the interconnection of all beings and the Earth. Upstander Project envisions a world rooted in responsibility and respect for all where upstanders confront injustice and repair harm to ensure all beings thrive together.

REI Co-op Studios develops and produces stories that entertain, enrich and explore the power of time spent outside, while complementing the co-op’s broader climate and racial equity, diversity, and inclusion commitments.