Document Type

Honors Thesis

Publication Date

Spring 5-2016

Abstract

A documentary in its beginning stages, Direct Descendant (Spring 2016) is the product of the research carried out and captured on film by a direct descendent of an active member of the Penobscot Nation, as she addresses issues she has personally faced in regards to her disenrollment from the Penobscot Tribe. Driven by the personal narrative of a dissenrolled daughter of a Native American, the film follows its protagonist on the emotional journey she embarked on to foster the understanding of repercussions that follow a Native American tribe that disenrolls members at a blood quantum of 1/4. As a rough cut of a hopeful feature film, Direct Descendant (Spring 2016) features the development of the narrator’s documentation of discussions that were sought out to voice how her experiences with disenrollment have contributed to the disconnect she experiences from a culture she has been strongly influenced by throughout her life.

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