Alcatraz is Not an Island

Institute History

  • 2001 Sundance Film Festival

Description

The 1969-71 occupation of Alcatraz Island, off the shores of Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, brought together Native people from across the country and beyond for the first time since battling the cavalry of the advancing United States Army in the 1880s. Alcatraz is a landmark in the contemporary Native American political front—a place where many found their voices in the shadow of the Civil Rights movement and in the face of the continued injustices perpetrated on American Indians by the United States government. Alcatraz Is Not an Island is an important and poignant Native-made documentary featuring interviews with Wilma Mankiller, Vine Deloria, John Trudell, and others. Filmmaker James Fortier does a thorough and insightful job of bringing awareness to this important and successful event.

— Heather Rae

Screening Details

As you use our Online Archives, please understand that the information presented from Festivals, Labs, and other activities is taken directly from official publications from each year. While this information is limited and doesn't necessarily represent the full list of participants (e.g. actors and crew), it is the list given to us by the main film/play/project contact at the time, based on the space restrictions of our publications. Each entry in the Online Archives is meant as a historical record of a particular film, play, or project at the time of its involvement with Sundance Institute. For this reason, we can only amend an entry if a name is misspelled, or if the entry does not correctly reflect the original publication. If you have questions or comments, please email [email protected]