Documentaries
The Canoe Culture Program aims to share the created works both in-person and virtually, using photography and video whenever possible to produce records of works created and increase the number of people who can learn from these important works.
Since opening its festival run in spring 2026, the film has been selected for more than 30 festivals in 10 countries, including the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival in Toronto and the Ācimowin Film Festival in Saskatoon. It won Best Indigenous Short at the Regina International Film Festival & Awards (RIFFA) and Best Documentary at Paddle Canada’s Waterwalker Film Festival. Its Vancouver premiere was at the Vancouver Maritime Museum on National Indigenous Peoples Day 2026.
If you are looking to book the film or want to know more, the press kit is available here.
Canoe Stories Podcast Series
Our own Mike Billy Sr. received funding from TELUS STORYHIVE to record canoeing stories from Elders, paddlers and carvers across Coast Salish territory. The result is Canoe Stories, a seven-part video podcast that is now streaming on TELUS Optik TV (channel 9) and Stream+. From November 24, the full series will also be free to watch on the TELUS STORYHIVE YouTube channel, reaching a much wider audience. Canoe Cultures is proud to support Mike through the coordination and production of the series.
A press kit about the series is available here.
About the Documentary:
Dugout canoe racing was one of the few traditions that was not interfered with during the colonization of North America. Consequently, this holds a very special place amongst First Nations people in Coast Salish territory as the races have served as a conduit for passing down culture and tradition. 7th generation Squamish Nation canoe carver Mike Billy Sr. carves a dugout canoe with his son and nephews at the Canoe Cultures program in Vancouver, B.C. This knowledge keeper shares the skills that were passed on to him with future generations of dugout war canoe builders.
This project was supported by The Canada Council for the Arts, Squamish Nation, City of Vancouver Cultural Services, BC Arts Council, Concord Pacific and Western Canada Community Projects Society.
The film has been on an international film festival tour playing in Sweden, Turkey, Germany, Argentina, USA, Canada, Serbia, Armenia and Russia. A recent highlight was the award for Best Documentary at the Black Rock City Film Festival in the USA.
The film is available for private/institutional screenings.
Canoe Connections is the directorial debut of Reeva Billy. In this film she interviews her father and brother (Mike Billy Sr. and Mike Billy Jr.) about the history of First Nations canoe racing from the latter years of the residential school-era to present day. With paddling careers spanning more than 50 years between them, both men see themselves as temporary caregivers of the sport, embracing it in the present and planning to hand it on to future generations.
The film has now played at more than a dozen film festivals world wide and has just won an audience award at the Fist Up Film Festival.
Coming soon:
Embers of Resilience
Embers of Resilience is a captivating and poignant documentary that follows the inspiring journey of Canoe Carver Dickie Louis and his family as they strive to restore a lost tradition and revive their cultural heritage. Placed in a Residential School where attempts were made to erase his cultural identity, Dickie’s grandfather rescued him and introduced him to the profound importance of paddling canoes—a practice that would become a lifeline in reconnecting him with his people’s roots. The film explores the devastating longhouse fire that deprived the Musqueam Nation of their canoes, leaving a void in their collective identity. With unwavering determination, Dickie, together with his son Kelly, grandson Henry, and a dedicated team of volunteers, embarks on the painstaking journey of building a dugout canoe, weaving their personal stories with the broader narrative of cultural revitalization. Embers of Resilience is a testament to the power of heritage, family bonds, and the healing that comes from reclaiming and preserving one’s cultural legacy.