- Brother’s Keeper (1992)
- In this documentary, Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky focus on the alleged murder of Bill Ward by his brother Delbert in June 1990.
- Lakota Woman: Siege at Wounded Knee (1994)
- The story of Mary Crow Dog, a woman involved in the same American Indian Movement activities of the 70s as Peltier.
- Mumia: A Case for Reasonable Doubt (1997)
- John Edington’s film investigates the conviction Mumia Abu-Jamal for shooting and killing the Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner. By re-examining the eyewitnesses’ original statements, forensic evidence, and the judge’s background, Edington makes a persuasive case that events did not occur the way the investigating officers claimed they did.
- Smoke Signals (1999)
- Based on a few stories from Sherman Alexie’s book The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, this film depicts life on the reservation. Alexie highlights the importance of family, community, and comedy while confronting serious issues that face American Indians -- alcoholism, abuse, abandonment, and poverty.
- Sundance (2005)
- Matthew J. Walton’s original opera examines the trial and incarceration of Leonard Peltier.
- The Thin Blue Line (1988)
- On November 28, 1976, a Dallas police officer was murdered on the highway. Despite strong evidence pointing to David Harris, a teenage runaway, Randall Dale Adams was convicted for the capital murder. Not only did this documentary raise awareness, but it helped acquit an innocent man of murder, inspiring other writers and directors to undertake their own social justice projects through documentaries. Many of the reviews of Incident in Oglala compare the motivations and goals of Redford (producer of Oglala) and Apted (director of Oglala) to that of Errol Morris (writer and director of Thin Blue Line). While Incident in Oglala failed to free or at least retry Peltier, it also fell short of the acclaim that Thin Blue Line received. Nonetheless, both documentaries tackle issues of the United States judicial courts.
- Thunderheart (1992)
- Based on real events that occurred on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota during the 70s, Apted once again delves into the interaction between the federal government and the Sioux. But this time he works with a fictional script about an arrogant FBI agent involved in an investigation of a murder on an Oglala reservation. Not only does Thunderheart share the same director, general plot, and year of release, but John Trudell, the national spokesperson for the American Indian Movement makes an appearance. In short, the two films complement one another and should be viewed alongside each other. As Caryn James states, “‘Oglala’ affirms the truth behind ‘Thunderheart,’ just as ‘Thunderheart’ enhances the emotional power of ‘Oglala.’â€
- Trudell (2007)
- "While not as charismatic as leaders like Russel Means and Dennis Banks, John Trudell has become 'the voice' of Native American resistance."
