What She Carries
PageBoy Productions & Suncatcher Productions
Feature Documentary - in production
Brit Hensel - Director
Shaadiin Tome - Director of Photography
Taylor Hensel - Lead Producer
What She Carries traces Indigenous mothers, families, and birth workers as they rebalance health with cultural knowledge and practice, taking back autonomy over birth, loss, body, and future—despite a medical system built to sever that connection.
The film explores pregnancy, miscarriage, moon cycles, intentional pregnancy release, breastfeeding, birth, and community care—told through the lived experiences of Indigenous women and families in distinct regions across Indian Country. Through a delicate and nuanced lens, What She Carries weaves together intimate portraits of those on the frontlines of this reclaiming movement, while engaging in candid discussions about how settler colonialism, medicalization, and federal policy have affected the reproductive choices of Indigenous women, past and present. The film challenges the historical and contemporary systems that have stripped away Indigenous peoples' sovereignty over their bodies, particularly in the realm of childbirth and womanhood.
The difficulties faced by many Native women are deeply rooted in the enduring effects of colonization, yet embedded within our cultural practices are the very antidotes to these struggles. Colonization sought to erase these practices, but we continue to reawaken them. By returning to traditional perspectives of holistic health, how we view ourselves and our bodies, we have the power to restore balance and healing to our communities—because when we heal our women, we heal the generations to come.
Our Team
We are a collective of storytellers and life-givers from eight distinct Tribal Nations, united by our vision to portray Native women on screen as we see them in our communities every day—powerful, joyful, gritty and abundant.
Our work on this film is grounded in personal relationships with birth workers, mothers, elders, and traditional leaders within our respective communities. Through this journey, we hope to shine a light on the unique differences and distinctions of our cultures, but the shared values and interconnectedness that unite us across Indigenous communities. Together, we seek to paint a fuller, more vibrant picture of womanhood, Indigenous identity, healing, the vast experiences within the life-giving cycle, and body sovereignty.
