125 minutes – Documentary
Language: English, Blackfoot, some subtitles
Festival release date: April 29, 2021 (Hot Docs, Toronto, Virtual)
Release date: November 5, 2021 (Vancity Theatre, Vancouver)
Production companies: Seen Through Woman Productions, National Film Board of Canada
Canadian distributor: National Film Board of Canada

Elle–Máijá Tailfeathers’ film, Kímmapiiyipitssini: The Meaning of Empathy, witnesses radical and profound change in her community. It is an intimate portrait of survival, love and the collective work of healing in the Kainai First Nation in Southern Alberta, a Blackfoot community facing the impacts of substance use and a drug-poisoning epidemic. Community members active in addiction and recovery, first responders and medical professionals implement harm reduction to save lives. This work is contextualized within the historical and contemporary impacts of settler colonialism; Kimmapiyiipitssini: The Meaning of Empathy draws a line between the effects of colonial violence on Blackfoot land and people and the ongoing substance-use crisis. Held in love and hope for the future, Kimmapiyiipitssini: The Meaning of Empathy asks the audience to be a part of this remarkable change with the community.

November 2021 Opening schedule:
November 19, Winnipeg Cinematheque
November 19, Rainbow Cinema Golden Mile, Regina
November 19, The Roxy Theatre, Saskatoon
November 19, Metro Cinema/Garneau Theatre, Edmonton
November 20, Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema, Toronto
November 24, Cinecenta Theatre, Victoria