NIKA AND MADISON

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NIKA & MADISON is a gripping drama from director Eve Thomas about two estranged Indigenous cousins forced back together after a night of violence. Madison (Star Slade), a Toronto university student, returns to her home community and receives a frosty welcome from her former best friend and cousin, Nika (Ellyn Jade), a skilled hunter content with reservation life. After a tense reunion, Madison ventures alone to a local bar, where a disturbing encounter with a young police officer spirals into assault. Nika intervenes, and the women flee as detectives investigate an official account riddled with inconsistencies.

While the film acknowledges the realities of police brutality and systemic racism faced by First Nations people, its heart lies elsewhere: an intimate exploration of female friendship, the complexities of cultural identity, and the fierce, sometimes perilous sacrifices loved ones make to protect each other, no matter the cost.

*Filmmaker in attendance for a post-screening Q&A (first screening only)