Synopsis:
I AM GITXSAN follows Phoenix Apperloo, a young Gitxsan graduate reconnecting with his rich heritage while confronting the injustices his people continue to face. Through encounters with residential school survivors and the voices of Gitxsan leaders, the story explores sovereignty, colonial trauma and the resilience of a new generation.
Made in direct collaboration with the Gitxsan Hereditary Chiefs, and featuring commentary from the world-renowned expert on intergenerational trauma, Dr. Gabor Maté, this documentary offers a powerful portrait of a Nation’s determination to protect its land, culture and future.
Winner of 33 international film awards.
watch the TRAILER
A Fazeli Films Production
DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT
I made I AM GITXSAN to explore how a people sustain their identity, dignity and relationship to the land in the face of generations of colonial violence.
Working in direct collaboration with the Gitxsan Hereditary Chiefs, I wanted the film’s emotional and moral force to come from the people whose story it tells: their testimony, their anger, their humour and their determination to shape their own future.
As a filmmaker and poet, I am drawn to the places where memory meets imagination. In I AM GITXSAN, animation gives that meeting a visual form, weaving the stories of earlier generations into a young man’s search for belonging.
My hope is that audiences leave with a deeper understanding of Indigenous sovereignty, and with a question that reaches beyond this film: what does it mean to stand alongside a people whose struggle for justice continues?
OUR FILM
AT A GLANCE
If you take a bucket of water out of the Skeena river, the Skeena keeps on flowing. Our rights still flow and they will flow forever.
-DELGAMUUKW (Chief Earl Muldoe)
- HooxI’I (Kolin Sutherland)
You know, human beings aren’t this miraculous creature made of some other cosmic material that’s totally separate from this world. We have the exact same minerals. The exact same building blocks as everything else on this land. Just like us, these trees are raised by the very same source of life…
- Hanamuuxw (Don Ryan)
It took us thousands of years to create this soil, and then they came and wrecked it in less than 200 years!
- Delgamuukw (George Muldoe)
I think the national dream for Canada is to get rid of all the Indians. It’s a hidden fact…because we own the land. That’s what they want to do; they’ve tried everything, but nothing has worked!
- Gabor Maté
One of the big problems is the ongoing sexual abuse of children. Now, that's something that was imposed on them by colonization, but they have to break that chain of transmission of trauma. If you want to deal with the problem of addiction in your communities, you got to address the question of sexual abuse of children and your communities.
- Hata Hill’yeets (Debbie Good)
(At Residential schools) if you didn’t eat what you were given, then you starved for two days. If you didn’t fold the laundry properly, then you were whipped for that. I mean, how many people can endure agony like that and survive?
- Skayan (Anita Davis)
We’re very rich in our resources, but we don’t benefit from it. So, when we hear about “economic development” … for whom? Not for us! It’s very beneficial for someone else, but not for us.
THE STORY OF SURVIVAL AND RESILIENCE
ACCOLADES
The Spirit of the Gitxsan has so far been celebrated at 30+ international film festivals!
AND THE NEWS CONTINUES….
Our Team
Writer - Director - Producer
HOSSEIN MARTIN FAZELI
Hossein Martin Fazeli is an acclaimed filmmaker with 70 international awards to his name, and works that have been showcased on platforms such as ARTE, BBC, and Canal+. His documentary, “The Tale of Two Nazanins” (2007), stands out as a powerful piece, credited with saving the life of a minor on death row. To learn more, visit – www.fazelifilms.com
Cinematographer
WARREN TANG
Warren Tang is an award-winning filmmaker specializing in camera work & post-production. His notable works include “Bound to No One”(2023), “Florida” (2023), & “I Secretly Listen to Canton Pop” (2024).
EDITOR
Sajid akbar
Sajid Akbar is an award-winning multimedia specialist with expertise in post-production for television, film, sports, and digital campaigns, as well as notable achievements in music and contemporary art.
