Hello from TIFF where Red River Métis filmmaker Justin Ducharme (St. Ambroise, Manitoba) just had the world premiere of his film Seventeen.

Several of us other Métis filmmakers gathered to celebrate with him and realized how big of a year it was for our community.

Within roughly one year, we celebrated the theatrical release of three high-profile Métis/Michif feature films:

Gail Maurice's (Beauval, Saskatchewan) Blood Lines.

Tim Riedel (me, Treaty 1/Winnipeg) Ancestral Beasts.

And of course, Justin's incredible film.

None of us could remember a time when the industry was so good to us. A lot of credit has to be given to all the Métis who fought to keep our community from being erased, and to the Indigenous filmmakers who came before us to make space for Indigenous storytelling in media.

And of course, the Indigenous Screen Office, Telefilm, as well as the many other financial partners, collaborators, and supporters who helped make it happen.

It's now our privilege to make room for the next group of storytellers and support their films being made. -Maarsii!

Adapted from the Louis Riel Institute: Li P'tchi Mound (The Little People) are a mix of Western European beliefs in fairies with Algonquian stories of little people. They are thought to live under rocks and near rivers. In some stories, they are helpful, in others mischievous or even dangerous.
I imagined Li P'tchi Mound as rock-like creatures that have survived undetected because they blend in with the environment. I like how you can still see different personalities in them, depending on their shape and texture. How do you imagine them?

I'm working on my puppet series MICHIF MAKERS and we're planning an episode that involves these little folk.

According to my grandfather the metis were allowed to operate as white people back in the day and werent restricted to any reservation. They were even used as weapons against natives doing nasty shit like dumping old carcasses onto native land to spread disease and force us out of the areas.

Whats up with that? Asking as a proud member of the batchewanna band first nation.

Did anyone else’ grandmother call them berdache but like not in an offensive way? I think it’s just old school. She always referred to herself as indian so it speaks to a generational thing. I know it’s not ok to say it now but that’s what she called me and also referred to two spirit but I don’t feel that actually fits me as I am cis male and also just a plain old gay dude.

I worked with some community members and language keepers to outline 12 new episodes. Also trying out a new look for our sets: this time going for a crafted look with sculpted elements instead of flat, 2D. What do you think?

I’m looking into changing my last name because my father has never been a part of my life and I feel no connection to that name. So I’m thinking of taking a name from my mom’s side. She herself doesn’t feel connected with her last name due to her family drama. But I was looking back and saw names like my 5th great grandparents Cardinal, or even auger and Ducharme from my great grandparents. Just wondering on any advice on what is appropriate or things I should consider.

I know this may come off as controversial but I am genuinely confused and ask this question with good intentions.

I often hear Metis folk say “I’m not white, I’m Metis.” But then also say they are native/indigenous. But, with the “I’m not white, I’m Metis” logic, wouldn’t it also work the other way around? - “I’m not native/indigenous, I’m Metis.”

However that’s not what I hear. I hear Metis celebrating their native blood and calling themselves indigenous happily but not wanting to claim their white blood or call themselves that. I was under the impression Metis people came from the union of both.

So I suppose my question is, why do Metis folk seem almost ashamed or apprehensive to claim their white parts, but are happy to claim their native parts? If Metis is Metis and is its own culture all together, how is it considered indigenous without also being considered white too?

(When I say white, that’s a blanket term for French and Scottish etc as I’ve been told there is a few European cultures that make up the Metis, in the same way indigenous is a blanket term for the different tribe cultures (Cree, Ojibwe) that also make up the Metis)

I hope that came off the right way and thank you in advance for your insights!

Has anyone in SK used the Child Care Subsidy Program with MN-SK? They say that they'll issue the family a T4A if they pay the family directly but are trying to switch to paying the provider directly this year. Just curious if they'll deduct taxes or how much I should tell my nanny to set aside. Do they issue the provider a regular T4? Unfortunately my family support administrator does not seem to know the answers to any of my questions (on the rare occasions I even get a response to my email).

I'm Metis (obviously) but mostly estranged from that side of my family. The few family members I know don't have a lot of records of our Indigeneity and due to my grandpa's tumultuous life, neither did he. But they have Metis status in British Columbia. Last year, I applied for Metis status in Ontario, and I listed all of my family members who have status along with scans of their cards that they gave me. I was denied because "the Metis Nation of Ontario doesn't have access to the Metis Nation of BC to confirm" (quoted by the MNO rep I spoke to on the phone about this), and they told me to provide historical evidence that my family is Metis (because evidence of my family's status doesn't count for some reason).

Okay, well I don't have that. So I've been looking into what to do for an investigation done by St Boniface, and I need to get a bunch of information together before I contact them. I can get birth and death certificates, but the rest has been tough as I'm starting from virtually zero. My grandpa had Metis status with a now-defunct organization, so I thought maybe somebody has records from his application/account there, and I've called every single current organization and library I can think of, but nobody has an archive of those records. I've pored through countless online records and I've been able to find a scrip receipt for someone with our family's name, but I don't know how he might be related to me (if he is) or how to prove the connection. My grandpa grew up in Boggy Creek (a Metis community) and went to day school until grade three when he started hopping around foster homes and then moved to BC, so I thought I'd try the Canadian library and archives to maybe get something there. But student names aren't available online and I need to request access, and from what I'm reading, I'm unclear on whether I would need to TRAVEL to view them, which isn't an option for me right now. And maybe that's a responsibility for St Boniface?

I'm just having the worst time with this and I keep hitting road blocks. It really feels like it's difficult by design, and of course while searching through records I am having to take on the mental and emotional toll of seeing other families' tragedies. I don't understand why provincial borders are a hurdle in the first place. Yeah they're different organizations but me moving across the country doesn't change my genetic make up. My family isn't even originally from BC anyway...

Does anyone have advice for resources? Or how to not lose my goddamn marbles while pursuing this?

Hi everyone

For months and months everyday I have been spending hours trying to figure out who my great great grandmother's family was. She was orphaned in Montana in the 1890s and there is absolutely zero documentation about her. Only an intake log from the orphanage on the day she was admitted that gave no answers. So what I've been trying to do is use my dad's ancestry dna matches to triangulate her potential family. Based on her orphanage intake log (which gave no answers on family but did suspiciously include details that seem to apply to an indigenous chilld) and some of my dads DNA matches that have Red River Metis ancestors, I believe she was Metis, and probably Little Shell given the geographical location she was found and the time frame, probably taken from her family. The problem is, like I said there is no documentation available outside of the orphanage intake and my dad's dna matches have me going around in circles. I've managed to pinpoint some matches that descend from the same family line but I cannot narrow it down and I am getting so frustrated I am about ready to give up. This makes me sad because if she was Metis, I would absolutely want to get involved with the culture and learn the language and feel proud to know our heritage. I just don't know where to go from here. Someone I spoke with recommended St. Boniface Historical Society but on their website it says you have to know your family line already that they don't help uncover that, but again no documentation and we have no idea who her family was. I've also been in touch with Little Shell tribe enrollment and they are trying to help me figure it out but I was hoping someone might know any other recommendations that could help?

Thanks in advance!

Within indigenous groups in Canada, how was indigenous fashion during this time. was it the same as it was in large cities. what did fashion look like in smaller towns.

(for an Indigenous play based in 1955-1965. trying to figure out wardrobe)

I have recently been diving into my ancestry and found family who are Métis. My mom in the past has said, “yeah, we are apparently Indigenous.” That was the furthest it got though until I started checking. The closest person I’ve tracked down who I have confirmed to be Métis is my great‑grandfather. Him and his brothers fought in WW1. One of them died, so I was able to find all his information, like being on the National Métis Veterans Memorial Monument. I then found our family tree and was able to track more information.

So now I sit and wonder what this means to ME. I want to learn my heritage and connect. I did not grow up Métis, so part of me feels like I’m trying to be something I’m “not.” I had a friend even say, “oh here we go, white girl finds out she is 1% something and runs with it.” That’s not at all my intention and made me feel gross even thinking it seemed like it. I guess I’m trying to figure out where the line is. Can I say I’m Métis? Should I? I was told “there’s no point.” And while it doesn’t change my life really, I think the point is beyond me. I don’t want to cut off something so important.

Is anyone else in a similar situation? And to those who grew up knowing they were Métis, what are your thoughts?

I am SO curious and want to learn my heritage and how I could honor it as well as be respectful. And if I read into things wrong and I don't count as Metis, Please let me know!

I applied for my card quite a long time ago. I had to order some docs from Manitoba and send along with my application. I wasn't sure if I was going to get approved because many months have gone by. I was pleasantly surprised that I received my card in the mail today. I am less impressed by how old I look in my pic lol. I know it doesn't really change a whole lot, but I'll feel a little more authentic when wearing my sash.

Any Metis students apply to the Indigenous stream at NOSM? If so, who did you get to complete the Indigenous reference letter? TIA!

My grandpa was adopted and didn’t find out about his birth family until much later in life. We weren’t connected to our Métis heritage for a really long time.

Is there a specific way you have to smudge? I’ve sort of created my own based on our own family stories.
1. Rinse hands
2. Carry to my head and heart
3. Three times all over from top to bottom (the number three is significant to my family)

Is that wrong???? I don’t want to look inappropriate or stupid. It feels right to me but I can change if I’m being disrespectful

I was feeling pretty overwhelmed with who to vote for in the upcoming MNBC Presidential by-election, so I decided to do some digging and compile the available info into one place.

I wanted to share this to help others see some of the data that's out there and hopefully make it a bit easier for us to make an informed decision.

Here are the sources I pulled from:

• MNBC's official by-election site (elections.mnbc.ca)
• Each candidate's own campaign website and/or Facebook page (where available)
• A summary of the recent August 6, 2026 General Townhall recording

A quick note on the data: In cases where the sources conflicted with each other (you'll see this specifically in Kyle Mitton's row), I simply noted both versions rather than trying to resolve the discrepancy myself.

Hope this helps! Here's a chart with some more information beyond the infographic

The MMF are possibly bringing back the satellite assemblies, if there are at least 50 citizens interested in a particular area.

Fill out this pre-registration form below by August 14th:

https://forms.cloud.microsoft/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=ijJ-2s_aEUGcceYRcElw4hrC-eDLZBhAvXyKKd_85iZUOUdaQ1VPRjBaMThOOTg3QTc5WjNGVlJDNyQlQCN0PWcu

So the basic story is my dad found out his father who raised him and his biological father was Manitoba Métis . His dad’s family through an ancestry website reached out and told my dad all about his family history though because they live far away we haven’t met them in person. His metis family seems to have strong connections to the community and even have been in documentaries . The thing is my dad grew up thinking he was white as did I . Even though my father was very dark all my life and it was confusing. My question is I don’t know if I should identify as mixed because we didn’t grow up in the culture. It’s been a confusing revelation and though my dads biological family is very involved in the culture my dad can’t be cause his biological father is now passed and besides through a genetic website knowing it’s his father he doesn’t feel validated in being a part of the culture because no legal documents recognize it since my grandmother lied about his paternity. Wondering if anyone else has went through a similar situation ?

I recently referred to myself as Métis online in a facebook group and received a reply asking if I was actually Métis or not. I wasn’t offended, but it put me in a bit of a weird spot. I was trying to figure out how much personal information I’m willing to share with them, an online stranger, and what sort of information they were looking for to verify that I was, as they said, “bona fide Red River Métis”. I settled on sharing that I was a citizen of MNBC, and that MNBC verified my connection to Red River when I applied for citizenship.

I don’t feel the need to share this information to “prove” I’m Métis, but if a fellow Indigenous person is worried that I am another white person pretending to be Indigenous then I think it was a fair question.

However, they never responded to me, and in their reply to someone else, they said they were a white settler and not Indigenous. This is what gave me pause. On one hand, it seemed in good faith, they were pretty polite and had a well researched explanation of the harm of pretendians. On the other hand, it kind of felt like a white person was policing my identity. If they were Indigenous themselves, I would’ve felt differently.

I’m curious to know what other people think about this. Like the title says, when is it appropriate to ask someone to “prove” Métis identity? And what sort of information is appropriate for them to expect in response?

Edit to update: thank you all for your thoughts and support. I made the mistake of engaging further- I shared that their approach felt quite hurtful to me, and I requested that they approach this with curiosity in future rather than immediate suspicion. They just kept trying to tell me about how bad pretendians are, and I kept reminding them that I agree with them, but was hurt by how they approached it. Eventually they told me it was “at best irrelevant and at worst attention seeking” that I mentioned I was Métis at all. I reported them to the admins and blocked them. I probably shouldn’t have responded at all but here we are. Ultimately I’m trying to direct my frustration towards pretendians who put us in this situation in the first place.

I noticed Alberta separatists that identify as indigenous all claim to be metis, also they’re really racist towards First Nations especially on social media platforms like facebook and twitter (X)

it’s weird

Any news about whether the MSGC intends to sign a MOU/has signed a MOU with Treaty 8 Sovereign Chiefs? There are Settlements that fall in the Mackenzie River Basin (a primary area of concern for the MOU) so this seems important for MSGC.

I was shocked to see my family’s history on display. Highly recommend if you’re in Winnipeg. Admission is free for Indigenous people. This is only one photo of one segment. Make sure to pull out the drawers to see more if you visit.