A fire is building at UBC — one that invites reflection, celebration
This year, the festival has expanded from a single-day event to a full weekend of programming, featuring interactive workshops and performances that highlight Indigenous voices across both the Chan Centre’s indoor stages and outdoor spaces. The weekend culminates on Sunday evening with a ticketed concert featuring dance drum group Northern Cree and pop artist Tia Wood.
“In the first year, we focused a lot on music performances,” said Chan Centre Head Curator Jarrett Martineau. “And as the festival has grown, we've expanded that to include lots of different other things. [This year] we have literary programming, we have films, we have dancers, we have storytellers, we have workshops, we have DJs, we have a skateboarding thing.”
Some of the artists performing this year include Choctaw singer/songwriter Samantha Crain; OMBIIGIZI, a collaboration between Anishnaabe artists Daniel Monkman and Adam Sturgeon, who delve into their cultural histories through their music. Wyatt C. Louis, a Plains Cree singer-songwriter from Treaty Six Territory; award-winning bassist and composer Mali Obomsawin of Odanak First Nation; and Hudson-based guitarist, composer and teaching artist Magdalena Abrego, whose genre-bending sound blends free jazz, punk and Queer experimentalism.
There will also be DJ sets, curated by the Indigenous collective HOTLATCH as well as a feature traditional dance showcases by Git Hayetsk and Coastal Wolf Pack.
In curating the artist lineup, Martineau explains that one of the key focuses of the curatorial process is centring Musqueam presence.
“We want to make sure that we are creating the opportunity to put Musqueam artists on the stage, both as hosts and as performers, and to have Musqueam culture woven throughout the festival,” he said.
This commitment extends beyond the local community. Martineau notes that the festival also aims to bring in underrepresented voices from across the continent.
“We have this real priority to invite artists from all over Turtle Island, all over North America, and so we've been trying to create opportunities for artists that haven't had a chance to play here before, certainly have never played at the Chan Centre or at a UBC event before.”
Beyond the musical lineup, the festival’s programming reflects what Martineau describes as “a real diversity of Indigenous nations represented in the festivals, both on the stage and also in the other programming that we're doing.”
This year’s non-musical events include partnerships with Indigenous-owned organizations such as Iron Dog Books — an Indigenous-run bookstore based in Vancouver’s Hastings-Sunrise neighbourhood.
“We're going to be having them programming a bunch of Indigenous authors on Saturday,” Martineau said. “They're putting together a literary scavenger hunt that lets people go and make some connections to find out more about Indigenous authors.”
Iron Dog Books will set up readings from Indigenous authors throughout the day. These events will take place in Cedar Grove, an outdoor stage tucked among the cedar trees just outside the Chan Centre.
The festival’s film programming continues the festival’s celebration of Indigenous voices.
“We've worked closely with the imagineNATIVE Film Festival,” said Martineau. “They have a touring program of short films and some feature-length films … by Indigenous filmmakers from all over the place.”
The festival is designed to be accessible to everyone, inviting newcomers and longtime supporters alike to engage with Indigenous stories in an open, welcoming environment. Whether you’re attending a reading in the forested calm of Cedar Grove or watching a film curated in partnership with imagineNATIVE, the focus remains on creating space for discovery and connection.
“[The festival] doesn’t require any prior knowledge – what you will find is that in coming to the festival, you have an opportunity to discover and learn about lots of different Indigenous cultures,” Martineau noted.
