Tuesday, March 24, 2026
4:30–6:30 p.m.
Guggenheim Memorial Library Room 101
Rated R
A stunning tribute to the resilience of Native people and their way of life, “Sugarcane”, the debut feature documentary from Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie, is an epic cinematic portrait of a community during a moment of international reckoning. In 2021, evidence of unmarked graves was discovered on the grounds of an Indian residential school run by the Catholic Church in Canada. After years of silence, the forced separation, assimilation and abuse many children experienced at these segregated boarding schools was brought to light, sparking a national outcry against a system designed to destroy Indigenous communities. Set amidst a groundbreaking investigation, “Sugarcane” illuminates the beauty of a community breaking cycles of intergenerational trauma and finding the strength to persevere.
Critical Acclaim
“[The film’s] sensitivity to the ongoing pain of its subjects is one of the film’s principal achievements. NoiseCat and Kassie offer an affecting portrait of a community that endures in spite of colonial genocide.”
—The Hollywood Reporter
“‘Sugarcane’ is soul-shaking. It’s profoundly evocative, with spoken memories and moments of inability to muster the words gut-punching with equal measure.”
—RogerEbert.com
“‘Sugarcane’ is immersive and incredibly beautiful, shot like poetry and scored by Mali Obomsawin. The result is both stunning and sobering.”
—The New York Times
Awards and Recognition
- Oscar Nominated for Best Documentary Feature. Director Julian Brave NoiseCat is the first North American Indigenous filmmaker to be nominated in the category. In a NYT essay NoiseCat wrote:
- “Four years ago, a ground-penetrating radar study commissioned by the Tk’emlups te Secwépemc First Nation identified evidence of about 200 child-size graves on the grounds of the Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia.”
- “After the discovery, I received a phone call. It was from a friend and former colleague, Emily Kassie, asking if I’d be open to co-directing a documentary about the legacy of the 139 government-funded and church-run boarding schools that operated across Canada and forcibly separated six generations of Indigenous children from their families.”
- Directing Award—US Documentary, Sundance Film Festival: “Sugarcane” won Best Documentary Feature at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.
- Best Documentary, National Board of Review: “Sugarcane” receives honor from the National Board of Review.
- Critics’ Choice Documentary Awards: At 2024’s Critics Choice Documentary Awards, “Sugarcane” received 8 nominations—the most for any film that year—and went on to win two awards: Best Political Documentary and Best True-Crime Documentary.
- National Geographic Q&A: Watch “Sugarcane” directors’ special interview with Oscar-nominated actress Lily Gladstone.
- Best International Feature, Doc Edge Film Festival: “Sugarcane” won the Best International Feature award at the Doc Edge Film Festival for its investigation into abuse at a Canadian Indian residential school.