Movie Monday: Keeping Traditions Alive: Lepquinm Gumilgit Gagoadim

Movie Monday is our weekly film series where we share short documentaries created through See Stories programs. These films highlight stories of place, culture, and community from across Alaska, created by students, educators, and community members who are documenting the histories and experiences that shape where they live.

We are continuing our new series of Movie Monday by featuring short films created by educators from across Alaska during the Anchored Histories Alaska intensive in Willow in June 2025. During this See Stories professional development retreat, educators explored storytelling as a way to share culture, history, and place-based knowledge through film.

Our next film in the series is Keeping Traditions Alive, created by Anchorage educator Caroline Wiseman. In this film, members of the Lepquinm Gumilgit Gagoadim Tsimshian dance group share how they continue practicing their culture, language, and ceremonies while living away from their ancestral homelands. Centered around the group’s 20-year anniversary Feast in Anchorage, the film highlights the power of community in sustaining traditions across generations.

This film reflects on how cultural knowledge is carried forward and how it is adapted, strengthened, and passed on to younger generations. One elder shares, “stepping into leadership comes with responsibility: to share what you know, to teach others, and to keep traditions alive.” Keeping Traditions Alive offers a powerful reminder that culture is not only inherited, but actively built and sustained by those who choose to carry it forward.

🎥 Watch Keeping Traditions Alive here or click the still below:

Discussion Questions

1. What role do names play in connecting individuals to their culture, history, and responsibilities?
2. What does it mean to “keep traditions alive,” especially when living away from ancestral homelands?
3. Why is it important for communities to create spaces (like Feasts or dance groups) to practice and celebrate culture?

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Check out our growing library of lesson plans on our Teacher Tools online community! Register today to access for educators who want to bring cultural storytelling into the classroom! If you’re an educator interested in integrating storytelling and cultural preservation into your classroom, check out Teacher Tools—our online community where educators can access free lesson plans, digital storytelling resources, and more.

Find our TeacherTools online community here: See Stories Teacher Tools Community