The Children Have to Hear Another Story: An Alanis Obomsawin retrospective on view this spring at MoMA PS1, New York

As Alanis Obomsawin’s creative home for nearly 60 years, the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) is proud to highlight the presentation of the exhibition The Children Have to Hear Another Story at MoMA PS1 in New York, after presentations in Berlin, Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal. This retrospective is dedicated to the work of Abenaki documentarian, activist and singer Alanis Obomsawin, acclaimed as one of the world’s greatest Indigenous filmmakers and still going strong after more than five decades of filmmaking. She has received countless honours in Canada and internationally, including a film series shown at MoMA in 2008, and returns to New York this spring for this celebration of her lifework.

The Children Have to Hear Another Story opens at MoMA PS1 in Long Island City, Queens, on March 27 and runs through to August 25, 2025. A public celebration of the exhibition will be held on Saturday, March 29.

After highly successful showings at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt in Berlin, the Vancouver Art Gallery and the Art Museum at the University of Toronto, the exhibition is currently running in Montreal until January 26, 2025, at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal (MAC) temporary space in Place Ville Marie.

Quotes

“What a pleasure it is to know that the voices of our Nations are being heard around the world! For many generations, our people were reduced to silence. I am very moved that MoMA PS1 has opened its doors to me. The first public concert I gave was in 1960 at Town Hall, as part of a program organized by Folkways. It is a gift for me to be welcomed in New York once again, 65 years later. Our First Nations have undergone enormous changes. Today, everything is possible. I’m very happy to live in Canada, and to see the number of institutions, in every field, opening their doors to our Nations. Thank you to those who provide everyone with an opportunity to speak. For me, the sound of the word is sacred.” – Alanis Obomsawin

“We’re thrilled to present this retrospective of groundbreaking filmmaker, artist and activist Alanis Obomsawin at MoMA PS1,” said Connie Butler, The Agnes Gund Director, MoMA PS1. “The exhibition offers a rare opportunity to see the full breadth of Obomsawin’s career in New York. We’re pleased to continue PS1’s commitment to fostering sustained dialogue on global issues surrounding Indigeneity and land justice, building on the success of recent presentations by artists including Melissa Cody, Chuquimamani-Condori and Joshua Chuquimia Crampton, and Hock E Aye Vi Edgar Heap of Birds.”

About the exhibition at MoMA PS1

Organized by decade, this retrospective features a survey of Alanis Obomsawin’s multidisciplinary artistic practice and activism, enriched by archival documents and news clips that shed new light on her work and its social and artistic impact over the last 60 years. The exhibition includes films selected from the 65 she has directed, 64 of which were made by Obomsawin at the NFB.

Alanis Obomsawin: The Children Have to Hear Another Story is organized by Richard William Hill and Hila Peleg and made possible through a partnership between Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Art Museum at the University of Toronto, and Vancouver Art Gallery in collaboration with the National Film Board of Canada and CBC/Radio Canada, and with support from the Canada Council for the Arts.

The presentation at MoMA PS1 is organized by Elena Ketelsen González, Assistant Curator, MoMA PS1.

To learn more, visit Alanis Obomsawin: The Children Have to Hear Another Story – MoMA PS1.

Alanis Obomsawin: a trailblazer for Indigenous cinema

Alanis Obomsawin, whose legendary career began at the NFB in 1967, is a major figure in the world of documentary film and a tireless campaigner for the rights of Indigenous Peoples. Her body of work in film and her commitment as a spokesperson for Indigenous communities provide a unique perspective on the social and political realities of those communities. Born in New Hampshire on Abenaki territory, Alanis was brought by her mother to live on the Odanak reserve northeast of Montreal at the age of six months.

Through films such as Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance and Incident at Restigouche, she has amplified the voices of marginalized communities and redefined approaches to telling their stories. She has also made a significant contribution to collective memory and raised awareness about the injustices suffered by Indigenous Peoples.

Obomsawin has been honoured with numerous distinctions, and her career has inspired countless filmmakers and activists. Indeed, her influence has been felt far beyond film, encompassing the worlds of art and culture as well. Her films remain a powerful means for educating viewers and focusing attention on Indigenous issues. Almost all of Alanis Obomsawin’s films can be screened online at nfb.ca.

Indigenous cinema at the NFB

Though Indigenous Peoples have been the subject of many NFB films over the years, their experiences were rarely depicted by Indigenous creators. Today, the NFB has produced or co-produced more than 460 works by First Nations, Métis and Inuit filmmakers—a collection that pushes past dominant narratives and provides Indigenous perspectives to Canadian and global audiences. Watch Indigenous cinema on nfb.ca.

Associated Links

Press kit: Alanis Obomsawin: The Children Have to Hear Another Story

French version here | Version française ici.

About the NFB

Founded in 1939, the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) is a one-of-a-kind producer, co-producer and distributor of distinctive, engaging, relevant and innovative documentary and animated films. As a talent incubator, it is one of the world’s leading creative centres. The NFB has enabled Canadians to tell and hear each other’s stories for over eight decades, and its films are a reliable and accessible educational resource. The NFB is also recognized around the world for its expertise in preservation and conservation, and for its rich and vibrant collection of works, which form a pillar of Canada’s cultural heritage. To date, the NFB has produced more than 14,000 works, 6,500 of which can be streamed free of charge at nfb.ca. The NFB and its productions and co-productions have earned over 7,000 awards, including 11 Oscars and an Honorary Academy Award for overall excellence in cinema.