FDLTCC free film festival features 'Bad River'

Touted as "the future of indigenous cinema," the Thunder Film Fest offers a free day of indigenous film May 4 at Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College in Cloquet. The day begins with a free breakfast at 9 a.m., followed by an opening ceremony and a sneak peek of an international documentary and Q&A with Ojibwe and Karelian casts until noon. At 1 p.m. is the community showcase, a local short film competition. The recently released documentary film "Bad River" starts at 3 p.m. Chronicling the Wisconsin-based Bad River Band and its ongoing fight for sovereignty, the film brings viewers through a history of children being forced into boarding schools and forced relocation efforts into the present, detailing the legal battle over the 70-year-old Enbridge Line 5 pipeline and its threat to the Bad River Band and Lake Superior. Following the movie are workshops and live music. A community feast starts at 6 p.m. with indigenous shorts at 7 p.m., an 8:30 p.m. awards ceremony and a late-night indigenous horror film starting at 9 p.m. Awards will be handed out for best-dressed attendees.