The Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies’ Tales from Planet Earth series will host a special screening of “Mother: Sisterhood in the Wild,” a powerful new documentary from filmmaker Chad Brown.
Brown, who previously created Blackwaters: Brotherhood of the Wild—a story of five men bonding on a fishing trip, which the Nelson Institute screened in 2023—turns his lens this time to women of color traveling through the Alaskan wilderness. The film follows their journey into Gates of the Arctic National Park, weaving together stunning scenery with intimate reflections on identity, family, and community.
“It’s just them exploring the area, and reflecting on what it means to be a woman and a person of color in the outdoors, their relationships with the outdoors, and this perspective of nature being Mother Earth, and what that means to them with their own feelings of being a mother, or relationships with their own mother,” said Alessandra Rella, outreach specialist at the Nelson Institute.
The event continues Tales from Planet Earth’s tradition of presenting films that challenge audiences to think about humanity’s place in the natural world.
Rella said the film is accessible to a wide audience. “I think anybody who is interested in any sort of environmental topic, who either sees themselves as an environmentalist—or really people who like to fish, because there’s a lot in there about fly fishing—will enjoy it,” she said.
What resonated most with her, though, was the authenticity of the women featured.
“I was kind of taken aback by just how honest a lot of the women were in sharing their stories and experiences,” she said. “It was really beautiful, hearing from these women and their perspectives on community … useful messages, especially now, about the importance of community and slowing down and being in nature.”
The first screening of Mother Sisterhood in the Wild will take place Sunday, September 28 at the Lussier Family Heritage Center, 3101 Lake Farm Road, Madison. From 4 to 5 p.m., enjoy environmental education activities, free pizza. Following introductions, the film will begin at 5:15 p.m. Another screening will be held on Monday with the film beginning at 6 pm.
