FESTIVAL PREMIERE
Roots and Tides
Director: Tiffany Ayalik
As Coast Salish communities revitalize ancestral practices across land and water, Roots and Tides builds toward the collective rebuilding of a 4,500-year-old clam garden, marking a powerful moment of cultural renewal.
CAST & CREDITS
Director
Tiffany Ayalik
Writer
Tiffany Ayalik, Ben McGregor
Producer
Caroline Cox
Director Statement
As an Inuk filmmaker and co-founder of Copper Quartz Media, my work is rooted in Indigenous screen sovereignty. For me, this project is about more than documenting a movement—it’s about participating in it. Roots and Tides is a reflection of the relationships, responsibilities, and reverence that define our connection to food and spirit. I believe that the most meaningful change happens in community. This film will showcase people doing the hard, beautiful work of reclaiming their foodways—not as a blueprint for others to copy, but as a constellation of possibility. It is an invitation for all Indigenous communities to look inward and around them, to find the threads of their own resurgence. Through the eyes of the Water Guardians, and with the wisdom of those they walk with, we honour the idea that food is not only sustenance —it is ceremony, memory, and the thread that ties us across generations. — Tiffany Ayalik
DIRECTORS BIO
An Inuk woman with strong ties to the land and her community, Tiffany grew up in a family of harvesters, engaging in hunting and foraging from a young age. Through her art and strong connection to the land, Tiffany is an activist for Indigenous food sovereignty and cultural reclamation, using her platform to inspire and educate others about the importance of these issues. Tiffany Ayalik is the dynamic host of “Wild Kitchen” and “NorthernHer,” celebrated for her deep connection to the wilderness and passion for outdoor exploration. As a Juno-Award winning singer, she captivates audiences with her powerful presence and talent as part of the award-winning band PIQSIQ. Tiffany made her directorial debut with the NorthwesTel series, NothernHer. She went on to Direct the CBC Absolutely Canadian Film, Okpik: Little Village in the Arctic, which has screened at festivals around the world and has Canadian and US Educational Distribution.
