Drowned Land

Screening Information

Date: Saturday, March 28, 2026
Start Time: 1:12 PM
Runtime: 1 hour 26 minutes
Location: Media and Immersive eXperience (MIX) Center
50 N Centennial Way, Mesa, AZ 85201

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Film Description

Drowned Land explores the fight to protect the Kiamichi River in rural Oklahoma’s Choctaw Nation. As state officials and private corporations push to dam and commodify the river’s remaining water, local residents, Choctaw culture-keepers, and scientists unite to defend the ecosystem that sustains their community. The film examines the deep connections between land, water, and Indigenous identity while confronting the ongoing legacy of displacement that began with the Trail of Tears. Through the story of the river and the people fighting to protect it, Drowned Land reflects on environmental justice, cultural resilience, and the rights of nature.

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Director:

Colleen Thurston is a documentary filmmaker, producer, and film curator from Tulsa, Oklahoma. Her work focuses on place-based storytelling rooted in Indigenous perspectives and explores themes of identity, land, and cultural resilience. Thurston has created nonfiction films and media for organizations including the Smithsonian Channel, Vox, museums, public television, and tribal and federal institutions. Her work has been supported by organizations such as the Sundance Institute, Firelight Media, ITVS, the Ford Foundation, Patagonia, Vision Maker Media, and the Redford Center. Drowned Land is her first feature documentary and examines the ongoing cycle of displacement tied to resource extraction within the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma.