Namesake
A film about place, memory, and what it means to live together.
In the coastal community widely known as Powell River, a request from the Tla’amin Nation sets off a public conversation.
What happens when a place is asked to remember differently?
Through interviews, archival records, oral histories, and community gatherings, təm kʷaθ nan (Namesake) follows the unfolding discussion around a possible name change for the city and the deeper question beneath it.
Whose stories live in the place we call home?
When the Tla’amin Nation asks its neighbouring city to reconsider its name, a community confronts history, identity, and the meaning of reconciliation in everyday life.
About the Film
təm kʷaθ nan (Namesake) documents an ongoing conversation between the Tla’amin Nation and the city commonly known as Powell River.
The name of the town honours Israel Wood Powell, a government official whose policies helped establish residential schools, criminalize cultural practices, and remove Tla’amin from its home at tiskʷət. The Tla’amin Nation asks the city to consider changing its name, not to erase history but to build a new future together.
The request sparks public meetings, emotional testimony, resistance and outrage, allyship, and reflection across the region. Elders share naming traditions that connect people with history, land and responsibility. Archaeological evidence reveals over 12,000 years of continuous presence. Residents grapple with family history, belonging, and fears of losing identity.
The outcome remains uncertain. The conversation itself becomes the story.
Following the Tla’amin seasonal cycle, the film observes how communities change slowly through listening, disagreement, repair, and time.
Names are not neutral.
Some names are gifts, given to help people understand where they are, what lives there, and how to move responsibly in that place.
Other names are imposed, marking ownership, authority, or conquest.
Across this region, Indigenous place names once described places of harvest, physical descriptions or geographical markers, and stories. Over time they were replaced by the names of distant officials who never lived here.
The film does not ask viewers to choose a side.
It asks a different question.
What responsibilities come with naming a place home?
“I am totally supportive of changing the name. It hasn’t even been Powell River for that long. I sympathize with our First Nations neighbours. I understand that their timeline is so much longer than our scale of time. We don’t even think of time in those kinds of numbers — 8,000, 10,000 years. And so this request isn’t going away. What’s five, ten, twenty years on an 8,000-year timeline?” – George Wall
“One of the first teachings is: you don’t drag your name through the dirt. So you’re given a name, and that’s a responsibility — so that if it’s passed on to someone else, they have a legacy to live up to.” – Koosen Pielle
“Naming was a powerful way that colonizers used to transfer their power — to legitimize or justify their power. They would change the names of everything, because everything had names before. Part of the process was changing those names to make it easier for colonists to pronounce, but also to allow them to see themselves in a landscape that was not theirs.” – Sean Carlton
“We don’t name places after people. Those places are named on their own merits. We might name ourselves after those places.” – Harmony Johnson
təm kʷaθ nan (Namesake) was created with the understanding that stories rooted in place carry responsibility.
Developed on Tla’amin territory in relationship with community members, Elders, and leaders, the filmmakers followed a listening based process, allowing the story to unfold naturally over time rather than toward a predetermined conclusion.
Before entering festivals or broader distribution, the film will screen within the community where it was made.
This approach reflects protocol, accountability, and care for the people whose histories and futures are connected to the story.
The wider public release follows, guided by consent and respect for the conversations the film invites.
Meet the Team
Namesake is the coming together of Tla’amin and allied filmmakers to tell a story that comes from and belongs to this place. In 2022, the crew turned the camera toward the town at a moment of great change. We did not know where the story would lead, only that each of us felt called to bear witness to what was unfolding.
Our filmmaking process was rooted in relationship and shared responsibility. We did not stand back as distant observers. We stayed in conversation, accountable to one another and to the community. The camera was guided by trust and consent. Tough decisions were made by consensus, always prioritizing the safety and dignity of those most affected.
In the Tla’amin worldview, stories are teachers. Skilled storytellers carry teachings over a lifetime. They know when a story is ready, and they understand the responsibility that comes with telling it. Stories shape how we see one another. They shape what is possible. We recognize that stories have consequences, and that there is a right time to speak. This film was made with a commitment to truth over comfort and with a focus on relationships that will carry on long after the credits roll.
t̓agəm Eileen Francis — Director
Eileen Francis is the filmmaker and IT technician for the Tla’amin Nation, documenting stories for future generations. A graduate of Capilano University’s Indigenous Independent Digital Filmmaking program and the Powell River Digital Film School, she has worked with APTN and served as cultural consultant on Bones of Crows. Her short film tiskʷat screened at the 2024 qathet International Film Festival. Eileen’s work is guided by a lifelong commitment to carrying forward the storytelling traditions of her family’s matriarchs.
ƛɛsla Dr. Evan Adams — Director
Physician and actor, Evan Adams is widely known for Smoke Signals, Reservation Dogs, and Bones of Crows. He currently serves with the First Nations Health Authority and the National Circle for Indigenous Medical. Evan previously co-directed the documentary Kla Ah Men: As Far Back as the Story Goes about the Tla’amin Treaty process. In Namesake, he helps guide viewers through history, memory, and present-day conversation.
Peg Campbell — Producer / Writer / Story Editor
Peg Campbell is an award-winning filmmaker whose work has screened and broadcast internationally on CBC, PBS, Knowledge Network and more. A Professor Emeritus at Emily Carr University and programmer with the qathet International Film Festival, she has spent decades mentoring filmmakers and supporting community storytelling. On Namesake, she shaped the story with care and clarity.
Angela Kendall — Camera & Sound, Editor, Writer
Angela Kendall is a documentary filmmaker with over 20 years of experience in television production. She combines hands-on production expertise with a strong narrative instinct, bringing emotional clarity to complex material. On Namesake, she led camera and sound and served as editor, helping shape the narrative from early production through post-production to its final form.
Claudia Medina — Executive Producer / Camera & Sound
Claudia Medina is a filmmaker and editor working through her production company EnMedia. She has directed and edited for APTN and creates both documentary and experimental media. Based in the qathet region, her work explores connection, land, and identity. On Namesake, she was involved from the outset, bringing thoughtful storytelling and deep respect for the local and historical nuances of the project.
aʔǰɛmaθot Davis McKenzie — Executive Producer
Davis McKenzie, MCM, is Director of Communications for the Tla’amin Nation and a Tla’amin citizen. For more than 25 years he has worked in storytelling and public communications, including the documentary Kla Ah Men and co-authoring As I Remember It: Teachings from the Life of a Sliammon Elder with Dr. Elsie Paul. On Namesake, he stewarded funding and partnerships.
Emily White — Executive Producer
Emily White is from Klahoose and Tla’amin Nations, and is the Manager of Intergovernmental Relations for Tla’amin Nation. As an interdisciplinary artist with a background in Indigenous Studies and Applied Ethics, she brings a strong focus on relationship-building and responsible storytelling to the project.
Upcoming Screenings
April 29th 5:00 p.m. – Hot Docs – TIFF Lightbox 3 [Q and A]
April 30th 10:00 a.m. – Hot Docs Educational – Hot Docs theatre
April 30th 2:00 p.m. – Hot Docs – TIFF Lightbox 3
May 2nd 2:45 p.m. – Doxa – SFU Downtown (with Justice Panel)
May 3rd 8:50 p.m. – Doxa – VIFF Theatre [Q and A]
June 20th 1:30 p.m. – Free screening presented by PR library (qathet/FCFS)
June 21st 12:00 p.m. – V.I.F.F. series – tickets (Vancouver)
June 30th 2:00 p.m. – Klahoose First Nation
July 17th 7:00 p.m. – Victoria F1rst Film Fest – tickets (Victoria)
August 26th 7:00 p.m. – qathet Patricia Theatre
September 10th 12:00 p.m. – Lasqueti Island
September 19 5:30 p.m. – Sechelt Arts Festival
Request A Screening
We welcome screening requests from communities, festivals, schools, and organizations interested in hosting a conversation.