Award-Winning Documentary Tours Montana
The Montana Human Rights Network and the Independent Television Station teamed up to bring a screening of the award-winning documentary Homeland to four Montana communities. Homeland is a rich and engaging story that follows four Lakota Indian families on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota over a three-year period. Focusing on the economic and social struggles facing tribes today, Homeland's goal was to overturn destructive stereotypes and reveal the complexities of contemporary Native American life.
After each screening, film makers Jilann Spitzmiller and Hank Rogerson answered questions from appreciative audiences. Great Falls was the first stop on the tour where 45 community members enjoyed the film. In Browning, 43 students from the English department at the high school viewed the film and then discussed their own upcoming video project with Homeland's film makers. Kalispell turned out the largest crowd with 65 audience members who participated in a lively discussion following the film. Despite frigid temperatures, ice, and blowing snow, 28 people came out for the Pablo screening. A special screening of Dancing Boy, a documentary filmed by local Native American Pat Matt, was also shown in Pablo.