By Katja Esson
Renowned for their balance and skill, six generations of Mohawk men have been leaving their families behind on the reservation to travel to New York City, to work on some of the biggest construction jobs in the world. Jerry and his colleague Sky shuttle between the hard drinking Brooklyn lodging houses they call home during the week and their rural reservation, a gruelling drive six hours north, where a family weekend awaits. Their wives are only too familiar with the sacrifices that their jobs have upon family life. While the men are away working, the women often struggle to keep their children away from the illegal temptations of this economically deprived area. Through rich archive and interviews, Academy Award-nominated director Katja Esson explores the colourful and at times tragic history of the Mohawk skywalkers, bringing us a nuanced portrait of modern Native American life and a visually stunning story of double lives.
Review
~ "Paints a fine portrait of the courage and conflicts of both the men who travel far from home to build skyscrapers in the bustling city, and of their families back on the Reservation who deal with their absences. This is a poignant and subtle film that shines a tender light upon contemporary Akwesasne Mohawk lifeĦ" - Peter M. Whiteley, Ph.D., Curator of North American Ethnology, American Museum of Natural History
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