Indigenous cinema will be one of the main themes at the 2019 Regina International Film Festival and Awards (RIFFA).

The event is being held from Aug. 13-17 at multiple venues in the Queen City.

“There was a lot of conversation around the board table to say what RIFFA will do to give a voice and a presence to Indigenous films,” festival manager Claire Bélanger-Parker says. “Our Indigenous coverage is on Wednesday, Aug.14. We start the afternoon program with Skawennati. That’s a big piece for us at 1:30 p.m. at the First Nations University.”

Skawennati is a Mohawk artist that will be presenting a master class called “the future is Indigenous.”

“We also invited We Will Stand Up to be screened during the festival,” Bélanger-Parker adds. “It’s not going to be competing for an award but it is going to be a part of the Indigenous screening.”

We Will Stand Up is a film about Colten Boushie and will be one of several Indigenous films shown Aug. 14.

The festival will also feature other Indigenous films made in Saskatchewan.

Waniska: An Awakening of Indigenous Knowledge was filmed in Indigenous communities in the province.

There are 13 films selected for the Indigenous Short Film category this year.

“Last year we created the Indigenous category for the first time and I think we only had four films so it is quite a growth this year to be up to 13 films,” Bélanger-Parker says.

(PHOTO: The launch of the 2019 RIFFA line-up. Photo courtesy of the Regina International Film Festival and Awards Facebook page.)