What She Carries is a genre-bending feature documentary exploring the revitalization of traditional birthing practices in Indigenous communities across Turtle Island. Through the work of birth workers, mothers, and matriarchs, the film blends personal stories of pregnancy, birth, loss, and renewal, revealing the vast and diverse experiences of women within the life-giving cycle. What She Carries sheds light on the broader themes of reproductive justice and body sovereignty, highlighting the past and ongoing fight for self-determination in Indigenous women’s reproductive health.

The film explores pregnancy, miscarriage, moon cycles, intentional pregnancy release, breastfeeding, birth, and community care—told through the lived experiences of Indigenous women and families in seven distinct regions across Indian Country. Through a delicate and nuanced lens, What She Carries weaves together intimate portraits of those on the frontlines of this reclaiming movement, while engaging in candid discussions about how settler colonialism, medicalization, and federal policy have affected the reproductive choices of Indigenous women, past and present. The film challenges the historical and contemporary systems that have stripped away Indigenous peoples' sovereignty over their bodies, particularly in the realm of childbirth and womanhood.

The difficulties faced by many Native women are deeply rooted in the enduring effects of colonization, yet embedded within our cultural practices are the very antidotes to these struggles. Colonization sought to erase these practices, but we continue to reawaken them. By returning to traditional perspectives of holistic health, how we view ourselves and our bodies, we have the power to restore balance and healing to our communities—because when we heal our women, we heal the generations to come.

Our Team

We are a collective of storytellers and life-givers from nine distinct Tribal Nations, united by our vision to portray Native women on screen as we see them in our communities every day—powerful, joyful, gritty and abundant.

Our work on this film is grounded in personal relationships with birth workers, mothers, elders, and traditional leaders within our respective communities. Through this journey, we hope to shine a light on the unique differences and distinctions of our cultures, but the shared values and interconnectedness that unite us across Indigenous communities. Together, we seek to paint a fuller, more vibrant picture of womanhood, Indigenous identity, healing, the vast experiences within the life-giving cycle, and body sovereignty.

Director: Brit Hensel (Cherokee Nation), Director of Photography: Shaandiin Tome (Diné). Executive Producer: Tracy Rector (Black/Ashkenazi Jewish). Lead Producer: Taylor Hensel (Cherokee Nation). Community Producers: Kahara Hodges (Diné, Chicana, Afro-Indigenous), Dakota Brown (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians), Princess Daazhraii Johnson (Neets’aii Gwich’in), Malia Akutagawa (Kanaka ʻŌiwi), Katsitsonni Fox (Mohawk Nation of Akwesasne), Quannah Chasinghorse (Han Gwich’in, Sicangu/Oglala Lakota Nations), Rexie Ah Chong (Filipino), Xochitl Fox (Aztec/Mexica).