hitoláayca (Going Upriver), directed by Anna Lueck, follows Devin Reuben as he trains to become the first certified Nimiipuu (Nez Perce) whitewater guide of his generation. The Nimiipuu have a deep history with river travel, including helping guide the Lewis and Clark Expedition down the Snake and Columbia, but centuries of forced displacement have left Tribal members largely absent from those waters since. Devin’s training is a step back toward them.
“I just really hope that I do get the opportunity to have grandchildren, and tell them stories about how the river has impacted my life,” he says. “I hope they see that, you know, you’re a young rez kid, you can do what you can imagine you can do. Push forward, you know? Break those boundaries. Be the first person.”
Filmed in Nimiipuu homelands on the Snake and Salmon Rivers, with support from The Redford Center, IF/Then Shorts, Mountainfilm, Pandion Institute, Winding Waters River Expeditions, ROW Adventures, Canyons River Company, and NRS.
Learn more about Pandion Institute’s guide training and workforce development work for the next generation of Indigenous river leaders.