God's Lake Narrows (film)

God's Lake Narrows is an interactive visual essay, written and directed by Kevin Lee Burton, co-created with Alicia Smith, sound design by Christine Fellows, and photography by Manitoba-based Anishinabe artist Scott Benesiinaabandan.{{Cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/manitoba/scene/other/2011/06/25/winnipeg-artist-kevin-lee-burton-shares-surprising-glimpse-into-his-hometown/|title=Winnipeg artist Kevin Lee Burton shares surprising glimpse of his hometown|date=June 25, 2011|work=CBC Manitoba|access-date=April 4, 2017}}{{Cite news|url=https://mobile.nytimes.com/blogs/lens/2012/01/11/an-interactive-project-with-no-reservations/|title=An Interactive Project With No Reservations|last=MacDonald|first=Kerri|date=January 11, 2012|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 4, 2017}} The visual essay is hosted online by the National Film Board of Canada and was funded in partnership with imagineNATIVE Digital Media Partnership.{{Cite web|url=http://godslake.nfb.ca/#/godslake|title=God's Lake Narrows|website=National Film Board|access-date=April 4, 2017}}{{Cite web|url=http://outwords.ca/2014/issue-may-june-2014/kevin-lee-burton/|title=Kevin Lee Burton - The Queer Cree Filmmaker|last=Smith|first=Kenton|date=May 2014|website=Outwords|access-date=April 4, 2017}}

God's Lake Narrows began as the RESERVE(d) project by Kevin Lee Burton and Caroline Monnet.{{Cite web|url=https://novelalliances.com/2014/07/20/indigenous-protocols-in-cyberspace-hospitality-and-kevin-lee-burtons-gods-lake-narrows/|title=INDIGENOUS PROTOCOL IN CYBERSPACE: HOSPITALITY AND KEVIN LEE BURTON'S GOD'S LAKE NARROWS|last=Gaertner|first=David|date=July 20, 2014|website=Novel Alliances|access-date=April 4, 2017}} RESERVE(d) art installation from the Urban Shaman Gallery in Winnipeg featured film, photography, archival images and sounds from the reserve at God's Lake Narrows.

Burton's intent for God's Lake Narrows was to highlight the resilience of people living on reserves. Burton states. "$3.8 billion has been spent on reserve housing over the last decade and people think we're so privileged: living off the backs of everyone else in this country. In my childhood, most of us were still hauling sewage out in pails."

God’s Lake Narrows is a series of 26 slides that seeks to encourage viewers to experience the virtual reserve community through photographs of the exteriors of homes and portraits of the people who live there. The purpose of the visual essay is to breakdown the stereotypes of Native reserve life.{{Cite book|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/859155627|title=Sovereign screens : aboriginal media on the Canadian West Coast|last=L.|first=Dowell, Kristin|date=December 2013|publisher=U of Nebraska Press |isbn=978-0803245389|oclc=859155627}}

God's Lake Narrows was the 2012 winner of the Webby Award for photography.{{Cite web|url=http://webbyawards.com/winners/2012/online-film-video/general-film/documentary-individual-episode/gods-lake-narrows/|title=God's Lake Narrows|date=2017|website=The Webby Awards|access-date=April 4, 2017}}