The Cinematheque

“A heart-warming and engaging film, Hopkins strikes just the right tone with her balance of levity and emotion, all while weaving in cultural practices [and] conveying the importance of saving the Mohawk language that colonialism nearly wiped away.”

Gail Johnson, Stir

The electric dramedy Run Woman Run takes place in the Six Nations of the Grand River and stars Dene comedian, actor, and writer Dakota Ray Hebert as protagonist Beck. She is an Indigenous single mom who’s lost her passion for life and her connection to the Mohawk language after the death of her mother. After Beck falls into a diabetic coma, she is visited by the spirit of iconic Iroquois long-distance runner Tom Longboat, who helps her train for a marathon to get her life back on track. Led by this inspiration, Beck navigates the ghosts of the past, dissatisfaction of the present, and fear of the future to create a better life for her and her son. Heiltsuk and Mohawk director Zoe Leigh Hopkins’s sophomore feature excellently raises awareness of the traumas of residential school and the erasure of Indigenous languages while creating hope for the future by honouring the spiritual and physical worlds.

Moon Jury Award, Audience Choice Award
imagineNATIVE 2021

Best Film, Best Actress (Hebert)
American Indian Film Festival 2021

“Busy, filling, and ultimately satisfying, Run Woman Run feels like a potluck of a movie.”

Chris Knight, National Post