NorCal Public Media Presents Slate of Films to Celebrate Native American Heritage Month

Includes Two KCPM Productions: Breath of Life: Revitalizing California Languages and Beyond Recognition

NorCal Public Media will be airing a slate of films to celebrate Native American heritage month, with the first one airing tonight (Nov. 1) on KPJK! They include Stories I Didn’t Know, Battle Over Bears Ears, Native Art Now!, Searching for Sequoyah. In addition, NCPM will present two programs they produced: Breath of Life: Revitalizing California Languages and Beyond Recognition. Find details about the films and their airtimes below! 

Stories I Didn’t Know (Rita Davern, 2020)
While a Minnesota family had always been proud to say that their ancestors once owned Pike Island, the story of its acquisition is far less glorious, and the story reveals the complicated legacy of westward expansion in the United States.
KPJK Airtime: Monday, November 1 at 8 pm
Film Website l streaming

Battle Over Bears Ears (Scott D. Pierce, 2018)
Bears Ears National Monument, a remote section of Utah characterized by distinctive red cliffs, juniper, and sage, is at the center of a fight over who has a say in how Western landscapes are protected and managed.
KRCB Airtime: Tuesday, November 2 at 9 pm 
Film Website l streaming

Native Art Now! (Eiteljorg Museum of Art, PBS, Viki Anderson, 2017)
What exactly distinguishes contemporary Native art from other contemporary art? The documentary Native Art Now! examines the evolution of Native contemporary art over the last 25 years, presenting personal perspectives from internationally acclaimed Native modern artists.
KPJK Airtime: Thursday, November 4 at 7 pm
Film Website l streaming

Searching for Sequoyah (James M. Fortier, 2021)The first documentary feature to chronicle the legendary accomplishments and mysterious death of the famed Cherokee visionary, Sequoyah, whose English name was George Guess. While much is known about Sequoyah’s many accomplishments, very little is known about the man himself. KPJK Airtime: Monday, November 8 at 8 pm
Film Website

Almost an Island (Jonathan VanBallenberghe, 2021)
A cinematic portrait of the Goodwins, an Inupiat family living above the Arctic Circle in Kotzebue, Alaska. Through observing three generations of one family over four years, the documentary explores what it means to be indigenous in the dramatically changing Arctic.
KRCB Airtime: Tuesday, November 16 at 9 pm
Film Website

Breath of Life: Revitalizing California Languages (Rick Bacigalupi, 2020)
Breath of Life: Revitalizing California Languages explores the painstaking efforts of indigenous Californians to revitalize the rich cultural legacy of tribal languages their ancestors have left to them, as those languages teeter on the brink of extinction. Produced by NCPM producer Rick Bacigalupi.
KRCB Airtime: Friday, November 12 at 8:30 pm 
KPJK Airtime: Monday, November 22 at 8 pm
Film Website

Beyond Recognition
Beyond Recognition
 tells the story of a Native woman and her tribe who occupy a sacred site to prevent its desecration, threatened by San Francisco’s urban sprawl. When this brave attempt fails to stop the development, the group vows to establish the first women-led= urban indigenous land trust. Produced by Michelle Steinberg.
KPJK Airtime: Monday, November 22 at 8:30 pm
Film Website l Streaming

NorCal Public Media also presents the 24/7 TV channel First Nations Experience (FNX) on digital channel 60.5 over-the-air broadcast.

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