Official Trailer, PEOPLE of the SACRED LAND. The full film is available for festival screenings, facilitated community conversations, and other educational and impact-focused online and in-person events. Inquiries should be directed to Jason Houston at jason@eight16creative.com or use the form blow. Please include as much information as possible in your request, including the type of event you’re proposing, your audience and venue, and budget considerations.
Independent Project
PEople of the sacred Land
The idea that we are living on stolen land isn’t new, or even novel; it’s a reality that exists across settler communities worldwide, and many people in the United States are aware of the blatant agendas, coercion, and profound immorality of the treaty process. What’s often missing from that conversation, however, are rigorous, comprehensive, academically supported Native-led studies proving that— even through the lens of modern law— large areas of what we call the United States remain illegally occupied. And nowhere is the evidence and culpability more dramatic than in the state of Colorado. PEOPLE of the SACRED LAND (2026, 32 min) follows Richard Willams (Oglala Lakota, Northern Cheyenne) as he recounts the findings of the Truth, Restoration, and Education Commission (TREC) of Colorado’s TREC Reports. While Rick’s story focuses on Colorado, the approach, implications, and impact of his work provide a model for Native leaders across the continent.
Richard Williams: Executive Producer
Dewi: Director, cinematographer, editor
Sarah Ortegon Highwalking: Field director
Jason: Cinematographer, finishing editor
Upcoming Screenings
2026-09-23: Boulder County Parks & Open Space (private screening, Longmont, CO)
2026-09-24: "Experiences in Relationship", Our Sacred Earth, Nederland Library (Nederland, CO)
2026-09-28: "Experiences in Relationship", Our Sacred Earth, Boulder Library (Boulder, CO)
2026-10-12: Denver premiere @ Denver Museum of Nature & Science! (Denver, CO)
2026-10-14: “Indigenous Peoples Week”, CU Boulder (Boulder, CO)
2026-10-15: Broomfield Sister Cities, Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribes, Elevations Events Center (Broomfield, CO) • RSVP here
October 15-25, 2026 TBD: COHere Boulder. Contact through the form below for more information (Boulder, CO)
2026-11-14: City of Longmont Senior Services (Longmont, CO)
Oct 22-Nov 1, 2026: Denver Film Festival 49 (Denver, CO)
October & November 2026: City of Boulder staff (private screenings, Boulder, CO)
November 2026 TBD: Colorado Health Foundation (private screening, Denver, CO)
February 5–7, 2027 TBD: Niwot Film Festival (Niwot, CO)
2027-03-04: “Docs After Dark” Boulder Library (Boulder, CO)
More screenings are in the works. Be in touch or watch this page for more information as they are scheduled. Want to share the opportunity or potential to screen PEOPLE of the SACRED LAND with someone? Download our one-pager here.
past events
2026-04-29: The Dairy Arts Center (Boulder, CO)
2026-05-28: Mountain Media Arts Collective Showcase at The Sie FilmCenter (Denver, CO)
2026-06-23: Museum of Boulder (Boulder, CO)
2026-06-25: Boulder County Parks & Open Space Education & Outreach staff (private screening, Boulder, CO)
2026-07-22: Colorado American Indian Education Convening (private screening, Denver, CO)
2026-08-07: Paradise Theater (Paonia, CO)
Screening Information
PEOPLE of the SACRED LAND premiered at The Dairy Arts Center in Boulder, Colorado on April 29, 2026 to a sold out audience. We are currently working on finalizing plans for more screenings in the greater Denver area, as well as in other key cities across the country where Rick’s model of advocating for truth, reconciliation, and Indigenous sovereignty might help advance the conversations.
Please email eight16creative@gmail.com or use the form on this page to contact us if:
You would like to be added to announcements for future screenings.
If you are interested in learning more about hosting a screening in your community.
You are interested in using the film in an educational context.
For anything else about the film!
*Screening fees are based on a sliding scale based on host, venue, audience, and programming. 100% of all screening fees paid go to Rick’s non-profit organization People of the Sacred Land.
The word “truth” is having a rough time in the 2020s, but this film rescues it from that rough handling, restores its strength, and launches it toward justice.
–Patty Limerick, Professor of History, the Director of the Applied History Initiative, University of Colorado at Boulder