SHAIONNA
After losing her best friend Cheryl to suicide, Shaionna forms this team her honor. At age 23, Shaionna hustles to make this team a reality, teaches the girls Lakota tradition, and orchestrates impromptu actions for suicide prevention, all as a means to cope with past trauma, overcome her history drug addiction and find greater purpose in her own life. When her mother’s illness takes a turn, however, Shaionna is caught between conflicting identities of activist and addict.
Shilea
In her first boxing match ever, Shilea jumps in the ring swinging. At age 11, Shilea is the team’s youngest boxer, but she is already familiar with the realities of addiction and suicide. She maintains a youthful optimism in moments of darkness, however, believing in Shaionna and the team in even their darkest moments.
Davita
Shaionna’s mother Davita, once a young boxer herself, struggled with alcoholism for years. In a testament to her strength, we meet Davita two years after contracting calciphylaxis- outliving every doctor’s prognosis for the painful blood disorder. As she comes to the end of her time on earth, she reflects on her relationship with Shaionna and hopes to leave her daughter with a better future.
JESSIE ADLER
Director,,
Producer,
Cinematographer, Editor
Jessie is a documentary filmmaker, cinematographer and photographer. In 2014 she began working as a Human Rights Storyteller for EarthRights International, collaborating with indigenous communities in the Mekong and Amazon regions to advocate for human and environmental rights. Her dedication to using video for advocacy and empowerment lead her to the School of Visual Arts’ Social Documentary Film program, where she received an MFA in May 2018. "The Boxers of Brule" is her directorial debut.
HANNA NORDENSWAN
producer, additional
sound & camera
Hanna Nordenswan is a Finnish freelance journalist with an MFA degree in documentary filmmaking from the School of Visual Arts. She has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Helsinki and has worked as a journalist both in Finland and internationally, for print as well as for radio and podcasts. As a documentary filmmaker, Hanna focuses on the stories of people around us that are rarely heard.
tracy rector
producer
Tracy Rector is a mixed race (Black/Choctaw descent) community organizer, educator, filmmaker, film programmer, and arts curatorwith a passion for amplifying and empowering Indigenous voices. For the last 17 years she has directed and produced over 400 films including shorts, features, music videos, and virtual reality projects. Her work has been featured on Independent Lens, ImagineNative, National Geographic, and the Smithsonian’s Museum of the American Indian, as well as at international film festivals including Cannes and Toronto. Tracy served eight years as a Seattle Arts Commissioner, sits on the board of the Mize Foundation, is the co-founder of Longhouse Media, and Managing Director of Storytelling at Nia Tero.
SHIALA GREY-SKY KING
CO-producer
Shiala is a Lakota painter with a passion for philosophy and a member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. Born and raised in South Dakota, Shiala was exposed to both the culture and the dysfunction of crumbling Sioux reservations; a strange and beautiful mix of song, dance, eagle feathers and decay. She grew up holding a camera, on the shoulders of journalist parents. Her introduction to human rights and media began at age eight when her parents debuted their newspaper, "The Native Voice.” Today Shiala fights for Indigenous rights through projects ranging from traditional Navajo weaving to the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, working to expose the plight of her people through film, art, writing, graphic design, and community outreach campaigns.
Marcie Hume
Executive ProduceR
Marcie Hume is a Senior Executive Producer at A&E. She began her documentary career at the BBC in London and has produced and directed a range of series for the BBC, Channel 4, National Geographic, and Discovery Channel. Her film “Hood To Coast” premiered at SXSW and was released in 370 theaters across the U.S. in 2011. Her film “Magicians: Life in the Impossible” sold to Netflix after a 2016 Hot Docs Film Festival premiere.
Christine Wexler
Christine Wexler is a freelance Social Impact Producer/Producer/Photographer living in New York. From 2017- 2019, as producer, on the short film documentary, Death Metal Grandma, having its World Premieres at SXSW and HotDocs 2018. The film has participated in over 53 film festivals and recently won in Cannes for the Emerging Filmmaker Award at the American Pavilion.
In 2018 Christine found her true passion as Social Impact Producer for the Documentary film, Chi-Town. Taking the film beyond Video On Demand, and developing an educational program for inner city kids, teaching resilience and highlighting the importance of community spaces and support. The film will be working with the Jacob Burns Film Center’s Education Department and Westchester County’s Department of Community Mental Health. Over 500 young teens were invited to view the film in January 2019 and participate in a panel discussion on gun violence.
Christine is a graduate of North Carolina State University's Textile Design program and advanced studies at the International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York City with a minor in Art Management, from SUNY Purchase College 2017. Over the past 18 years, she has successfully built a following as a photographer throughout the Northeast through commissioned artworks, commercial installations, solo shows and client based projects.