Stories from the Canoe

This film centers on Pacific Northwest Tribal canoe culture, created by Woodrow Hunt (Tule Films) in collaboration with Confluence.

This canoe film project was conceived originally as a public gathering. Several years ago Tribal leaders envisioned a Native canoe race and celebration of culture. The idea was that Confluence could facilitate the gathering rather than act as a formal host. CanoeFluence—as the race event became known—would be an opportunity for canoe family members to compete and share culture. As the pandemic wore on, we had to transition our plans to instead focusing on the film. Though a long way from the original idea, the film’s premiere screening became an opportunity for Canoe Families to gather and share culture to keep this Indigenous movement strong into the future.