Directed By: Katja Esson
2011 | 75 min
United States

Sunday, November 13: 2:00 pm

Kaufmann Theater
Filmmaker in Person

Charles C. Ebbets's 1932 photograph "Lunch atop a Skyscraper," taken of 11 men balanced on a girder during the construction of New York's RCA building, is instantly recognizable. What is less well known is that three of the men pictured are Native Americans of the Mohawk tribe. Jerry McDonald Thundercloud and Sky Fox know the history intimately, as their fathers and grandfathers took on the dangerous work building the outlines of Manhattan's iconic skyline when few other jobs were available to them. Traveling six hours from their home on the Akwesasne Reservation and staying away for weeks at a time, these men continue the proud tradition of Mohawk ironworkers as they struggle to preserve more deeply rooted traditions. Filmmaker Katja Esson spends time with these men and their families as they try to reconcile their lifestyle with their responsibilities to their families, to their ancestors, and to themselves.

Stay after the screening for a performance by Skydancer musicians Bear Fox and Katsitsionni Fox, who will be joined the film's composer Robby Baier.