The film, recently screened at Cinecenta, challenges the way documentaries have historically been made
Photo via Lantern Films and Experimental Forest Films/National Film Board of Canada.
Nechako: It Will Be a Big River Again, a documentary by UVic alumna and Stellat’en First Nation member Dr. Lyana Patrick, tells a story of the resilience and strength of the Saik’uz and Stellat’en Nations.
The film follows an ongoing court case between the Saik’uz and Stellat’en Nations, the B.C. and Canadian governments, and the Canada-based mining company Rio Tinto Alcan (RTA). When the Kenney Dam was constructed in the 1950s, it brought devastating floods and massive diversions of the Nechako River, which have devastated salmon populations and local communities. The dam generates power for Rio Tinto Alcan’s — formerly the Aluminum Company of Canada’s — aluminum smelter, and generates excess power that is sold off, often to the United States.
While the film was released earlier this year, the creation of the documentary started five years ago, with seeds of the story sown for Patrick as far back as 1994. During a co-op placement, Patrick had the opportunity to write for the Native Voice, where she first reported on the Kenney Dam, which now diverts over 70 per cent of the Nechako River.
The film was screened at Cinecenta on Nov. 6, followed by a Q&A with Patrick, who is now an Associate Professor and Faculty Teaching Fellow at Simon Fraser University’s Faculty of Health.
“I wanted to tell this story because I don’t think a lot of people know about this history. And they don’t know what our territories and our waters look like,” said Patrick during the post-screening question period.
Although Patrick didn’t grow up on her nation’s territories to bear witness to the devastation, she remained closeby. “I’ve always wanted to work with my own nation,” she said. “This was a really special opportunity for me to work with my people and to learn more about our culture and our history.”
Collaboration was the driving force behind this project for Patrick, who sought to challenge traditional industry standards throughout production. “Something I really focus on is how the films are getting made. Of course the message getting out and spreading action and getting people to do things is really important, but I think that a really powerful intervention, in terms of storytelling, is to really question how things are being done,” said Patrick.
The Nechako documentary reflects what Patrick refers to as “narrative sovereignty” — the idea that Indigenous Peoples can tell their stories through their own lens, without any stereotypes or prejudices in the way. The National Film Board (NFB), who co-produced the film, negotiated contracts with Nechako Films INC to “ensure that copyright, reciprocity, and IP stayed with the Nechako Nations.” At this time, this is the only NFB contract with this language.
At the Planet in Focus Int’l Environmental Film Festival in Toronto, Nechako received the Mark Haslam Award, which “acknowledges excellence in stories depicting underrepresented communities, and which embody the principle of narrative sovereignty” for their work.
“In documentary, the communities that are being filmed with historically have not really benefitted completely from the work that’s being done,” said Patrick. “We can’t have just ego-driven processes that benefit a very few people. We need to do things differently and better.”
Patrick is hopeful that the story of the Nechako River will touch a wide range of audiences and push them towards some kind of action. “I hope [the audience] feels inspired by these multi-decade efforts of community,” said Patrick. “No matter what, persevere and persevere .… There’s so much we can do and we should do.”
Those involved in hosting the screening emphasized the importance of simply sharing the story. Everyone present was encouraged to share the film with at least 10–15 people by the weekend, as well as being invited to host their own screenings.
Another feature film is likely a ways off for Patrick as of now, but her interest in these themes is unlikely to wane. “Water and dams have always… called to me,” she said. Whether it be in future films or her research and teaching at SFU she says, “It’s going to be the remainder of my life’s work, for sure.”
“We need new ways of doing things,” said Patrick, about the collaborative process of working on this film. “We need new ways of telling stories that reflect the type of leadership we need in this world.”
Nechako: It Will Be a Big River Again is a Lantern Films/ Experimental Forest Films and National Film Board of Canada co-production, now available for free streaming across Canada on nfb.ca and the NFB app as of Monday, 17 Nov. 2025.
