young Indigenous woman and does not offer the perspective of settlers in the unfair realm of trade culture and the new hybrid culture it eventually created. The film examines the relationship between Indigenous peoples and settlers in the fur trade and the consequences of those unfortunate alliances for the Indigenous women who were used as bargaining chips to ensure "fair" trades. Bailey showcases the settler characters as opinionated and ill-mannered opportunists in the early contact with Indigenous peoples and communities. Rightfully alluding to the eventual historical grotesque mistreatment and genocide of Indigenous peoples and cultures. While in a historic context Indigenous people did intentionally engage with the Europeans, they had no way of foreseeing the dangers that would accompany this decision would bring them and their future generations. Through Ikwe we are given a sense for foreshadowing to these dangers through the relationship between Ikwe and Angus, especially regarding the wellbeing of their children. The character of Ikwe is a by-product of her culture and she struggles throughout the film to adhere to colonial mainstream expectations of her as a woman, wife, and mother. She resists the Western patriarchal ideology that as a woman she must obey her husband and that his words and actions are law within the structure of their family. In many Indigenous cultures men and women complementary gender roles which are rooted in equality and mutual respect. However, colonial society gender roles were much stricter and were rooted in the belief and men were superior to women which denied women any right. Norma Bailey pushed back from many colonial and sexist structures through the film Ikwe as she offered viewers a different version of colonialism and its historical impact then what is typically represented in film and television while creating an Indigenous centred perspective. Bailey worked within decolonization structures through her casting choices and use of traditional Indigenous language throughout the film. Ikwe used real Indigenous actors to play to roles of the Indigenous characters which was not common during the 1980s film industry when it was still socially tolerated to cast white actors and actresses in roles portraying the experiences of people of colour. By casting Indigenous people to play Indigenous characters Bailey was consciously underlining the importance of real Indigenous representation in the cinematic industry and clearly positioning herself as an ally to the larger decolonization movement. Furthermore, by using non-professional actors in the