Drowned Land - Director Colleen Thursto

In director Colleen Thurston’s exceptional feature documentary, DROWNED LAND, history, water rights and family collide into a scathing expose on public / private sector corruption that threatens to destroy the lives of thousands of powerless people. The narrative arc of Drowned Land follows the river as its main character—witnessing the ebb and flow of its life-giving ability through the seasons, and the detrimental impact caused by damming and development projects. The director, Colleen, explores the effects of her grandfather's work designing dams for the Army Corps of Engineers, her tribe’s ongoing struggles with resource exploitation, and how it shapes her reconciliation of the past with the present. Interwoven are the stories of the river’s advocates—residents, Choctaw culture-keepers, and scientists—who have come together to save the river and initiate a paradigm shift grounded in ideals of re-matriation and the Rights of Nature, reinforcing a commitment to end the cycle of disconnection from our land. Director Colleen Thurston stops to talk about the importance of water, local control of vital resources, and our primal connection to land and our shared history.

About the filmmaker - Colleen Thurston is a documentary storyteller, producer and film curator from Tulsa, Oklahoma. She has created non-fiction film and videos for the Smithsonian Channel, Vox, and museums, public television, and federal and tribal organizations. Her work has screened at international film festivals and broadcast nationwide.