The Northlander is a science fiction film unlike anything you ’ ve ever seen . In fact , as the first theatrical feature film in the sub genre of indigenous futurism , it ’ s unlike anything anybody ’ s ever seen . Director Benjamin Ross Hayden ( a Canadian Métis - part Aboriginal , part European ) describes the genre as having a spiritual perspective against the colonial narrative of science fiction fantasy . Essentially the film is about a quest for identity , a search for answers , and a fight for survival . It ’ s kind of like a Mad Max film with a higher purpose that features an all-First Nations cast .