Siksikakowan: The Blackfoot Man (2025) Big Sky 2026

 Sinakson Trevor Solway returns to his home nation of Siksika to look  at what it means to be a man or masculine with in the his community.  The film explores the notions of masculinity via observational sequences where men and boys interact with each other. We see them at a rodeo, playing hockey, hanging out, raising their families and in other places. The camera just observes and over time we allowed to piece together what it means to be “a man”.

SIKSIAKOWAN: THE BLACKFOOTMAN is an amazing film. I completely understand why it has won a number of awards. It’s a film of quiet power that sneaks up on you and blindsides you.

I’m going to be honest and say at the start I wasn’t clicking with the film. I was fighting it because I thought I knew what it was doing. It was a little bit into it before it suddenly clicked, and I began to see the layers and the various levels of what being a man entails truly is. This isn’t macho posturing; it is something more complex and in many ways more loving. It’s a film about the brother hood of men, but more importantly it’s an examination of fathers and sons.

I was deeply moved and when it was done I found I was talking out loud to no one in particular.

You need to see this. This isn’t just the story of just Native men, but I think all men everywhere. This is a film that speaks volumes about our basic humanity.

Highly recommended. Look for it to be on my end of the year lists.