A National Film Board of Canada Production

With tenderness and grace, filmmaker Sinakson, Trevor Solway, offers an intimate exploration of Indigenous masculinity rarely seen on screen.

Short Synopsis

Siksika filmmaker Sinakson, Trevor Solway, intimately portrays the lives of Blackfoot men as they navigate identity, kinship and the complex expectations of manhood. Through unfiltered moments and revealing conversations set against the breathtaking landscape of the Prairies, the film reimagines what it means to be a Native man. Siksikakowan: The Blackfoot Man is a profound ode to strength, vulnerability and love across generations.

Long Synopsis

What does it mean to be a (Native) man? In Siksikakowan: The Blackfoot Man, filmmaker Sinakson, Trevor Solway, returns to his home nation of Siksika to reveal a portrait of Indigenous masculinity rarely seen on screen.

Through deeply intimate conversations, Solway offers unfiltered glimpses into the daily lives of his fellow Blackfoot men. Fathers, sons, artists, athletes, DJs, each navigating what it means to be a man in a world that often misunderstands and stigmatizes who they are. Solway, who grew up feeling pressure to “cowboy up,” quietly dissects and prods at rigid ideals of manhood, calling on the bonds of kinship he’s nurtured over a lifetime.

Set against the sweeping backdrop of the Prairies, Siksikakowan resonates as a luminous exploration of strength and vulnerability across generations of men and boys embracing the intricacies of self-discovery, identity and love.

Interview conducted by Jason Ryle

What inspired you to make this film, and why did you choose this particular story?
This film comes from a deeply personal place. Growing up in Siksika, I was surrounded by specific expectations of what it meant to be a man, but I never felt like I always fit into that mould. I was a sensitive kid and was often told to “man up” or “cowboy up,” and I found myself overcompensating, trying to prove I was a man… or live up to this idea of what a “man” should be. That struggle shaped my desire to explore and maybe deconstruct not only the image of masculinity around me but also my own relationship to it.

The way Indigenous men, especially Blackfoot men, have been portrayed in the media also played a big role in inspiring this project. In films or in popular culture, we’ve often been cast as these “lords of the Plains” or feared warriors, but those depictions are unhealthy, especially when mixed with colonial trauma, which is still present. I wanted to show Indigenous men as more than stereotypes… to present them as complex and vulnerable human beings while reclaiming healthier expressions of masculinity.

What was your approach to portraying the men in the film, and how did you decide who to include?
The men in the film are people I’ve known for a long time, and that trust was key to the process. I wanted to portray them in an honest and unvarnished way, avoiding two extremes: putting them on a pedestal or throwing them under the bus. That balance was my touchstone.

I didn’t want to dictate their stories or create artificially tidy character arcs because life isn’t like that. Their stories don’t end just because the film does, and I felt it was important to reflect that. My goal was to show them in a way that felt real… to let them speak for themselves while capturing the complexity and contradictions that exist in all of us.

Why did you choose the vérité style for this film, and how did it challenge you as a filmmaker?
Using a vérité approach felt like the only way to tell this story. I spent 90 days over four years filming, and always as a one-person crew, just showing up with my camera and being present in their lives. I didn’t want to set things up or overly direct moments; instead, I let their lives unfold naturally.

This approach was a departure from how I’ve worked in the past, and it required a lot of patience. I had to let go of making decisions for the characters or controlling the narrative, which was challenging. But it was also freeing because it allowed the authenticity of their lives to come through. For me, this method aligned with the heart of the story: letting the men be themselves without imposing my own framework.

What role did your personal background play in shaping the film’s perspective?
My upbringing in Siksika shaped so much of this film. As a kid, I didn’t have a lot of access to artistic outlets, so I spent a lot of time observing and trying to make sense of the world around me. That sensitivity and introspection have always been part of who I am, and now, with a camera, I’m able to explore the questions and emotions I’ve carried with me since childhood.

It was also important to me that this film came from a place of lived experience. As someone from the community, I wanted to show our world from the inside out. When people from outside our communities tell these stories, there’s often a risk of reducing us to costumes or stereotypes. I wanted this film to feel authentic, like it could only have been made by someone who has lived it.

How do you see this film impacting audiences, and who is it for?
I hope this film helps people see Indigenous men as the complex, vulnerable human beings we are. I want it to resonate within the Blackfoot Nation and other Indigenous communities but also with people outside of them. It’s about showing the world—and ourselves—that there’s more than one way to be a Native man.

This film isn’t about forcing answers or redefining masculinity in a single way. It’s about creating space for people to reflect, to see these men and boys for who they are, and to witness moments of vulnerability and strength. I hope it encourages viewers to look beyond stereotypes and connect with the emotions and experiences these men share. At its core, it’s about showing our humanity on our own terms.