Two reservation-made documentaries candidates for Big Sky Award

Two short documentaries filmed on the Flathead Indian Reservation are among eight contenders for the Big Sky Award at the 2026 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival.

“The Water Keepers,” chronicles a groundbreaking tribal water-measurement program launched in 1982.

Another qualifier is “Paving the Way,” about the evolution of skateparks on the Reservation.

"The Water Keepers" tells the largely untold story of how a small group of tribal scientists built a comprehensive water-measurement network that ultimately laid the scientific foundation for one of the most significant water rights settlements in the United States, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) Water Compact. The film is one of eight finalists competing for the festival’s Big Sky Award.

For decades, tribal scientists installed and continue to maintain stream gauges across the Flathead Basin, collecting hard data that replaced theoretical models with measurable facts. That long-term commitment to science proved decisive during negotiations over water rights, allowing tribal leaders, state officials and federal lawmakers to rely on empirical evidence rather than projections.

After years of negotiation, the CSKT Water Compact was approved by the Montana Legislature, ratified by Congress, and signed into law in 2020. The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes formally approved the compact the same year. The agreement is widely recognized as a cornerstone for long-term economic stability, environmental stewardship and legal certainty across the region.

While the compact became one of the most closely scrutinized and controversial measures in Montana legislative history, the film emphasizes that its ultimate success rested on data, decades of careful measurement that demonstrated how water actually moves through the landscape.

“This is a story about tribal scientists who built something durable,” explains the film’s narrator. “They replaced assumptions with evidence and created a record strong enough to carry the weight of history.”

The film is directed by Daniel Glick, whose previous work includes In the Spirit of Atatice: The Untold Story of the National Bison Range. Producers include tribal members Robert McDonald and Casey Ryan.

Featured voices in the film include former CSKT Chairman Tom McDonald, Shane Morigeau, Vernon Finley, Bill Foust, George McLeod, Steve Ashley, Seth Makepeace, John Carter, and numerous technicians and scientists who helped build and sustain the water-measurement program over four decades.

“Paving the Way,” set against the sweeping landscapes of the Flathead Indian Reservation, follows skateboarder, seamstress and artist Alishon Kelly while exploring the connection between skateboarding, cultural traditions and artistic expression.

As five new skateparks rise across the reservation, the story highlights the sport’s power to build community, foster confidence and challenge stereotypes and offers a vibrant portrait of young people who fall, get back up, and carve their own paths – one drop-in at a time.

The 22-minute documentary is directed by Keelan Williams and produced by Ivan MacDonald and Whitney Williams.

The Big Sky Documentary Film Festival screens more than 150 documentaries from around the globe. The Big Sky Award honors the best film about the American West. Learn more at bigskyfilmfest.org.

    Skateboarder, seamstress and artist Alishon Kelly helps tell the story of skateboarding on the Flathead Reservation in "Paving the Way," a candidate for the Big Sky Award at this year's Big Sky Documentary Film Festival.