Sydney Freeland

Directing

Sydney Freeland

Born October 29, 1980 · Gallup, New Mexico, USA (age 45)

Sydney Freeland (born October 29, 1980) is a Native American filmmaker. She is a citizen of the Navajo Nation. She wrote and directed the film Drunktown's Finest (2014), which garnered numerous accolades after premiering at the Sundance Film Festival. Her second film, Deidra & Laney Rob a Train, debuted at Sundance and was released on Netflix in 2017; her third, Rez Ball, was released in 2024. D…

Known For

PreyPrey · 2022
Prey
7.72022
MovieThrillerAction
When danger threatens her camp, the fierce and highly skilled Comanche warrior Naru sets out to protect her people. But the prey she stalks turns out to be a highly evolved alien predator with a technically advanced arsenal.
HoverboardHoverboard · 2012
Hoverboard
2012
MovieAdventureComedy
After watching Back to the Future 2, an imaginative young girl and her stuffed teddy bear try to invent a real, working Hoverboard.
Rez BallRez Ball · 2024
Rez Ball
6.42024
MovieDrama
After losing their star player, a high school basketball team rooted in Native American culture must unite to keep their state championship dreams alive.
Deidra & Laney Rob a TrainDeidra & Laney Rob a Train · 2017
Deidra & Laney Rob a Train
5.62017
MovieDramaComedy
After their mother ends up in jail, two sisters turn to train robbery in order to support their family.
Drunktown's FinestDrunktown's Finest · 2014
Drunktown's Finest
6.12014
MovieDrama
On a desolate Navajo reservation in New Mexico, three young people – a college-bound, devout Christian; a rebellious and angry father-to-be; and a promiscuous but gorgeous Nádleehi (trans person) – search for love and acceptance.
The Thick Dark FogThe Thick Dark Fog · 2011
The Thick Dark Fog
8.02011
MovieDocumentary
Walter Littlemoon attended a federal Indian boarding school in South Dakota sixty years ago. The mission of many of these schools in 1950, was still to “kill the Indian and save the man.” The children were beaten, humiliated or abused if they spoke their language or expressed their culture or native identity in any way. The trauma led many to alcoholism and violence in adulthood. At age 58, Walter began writing his memoirs as a way to explain his own abusive behaviors to his estranged children, but he could not complete the project without confronting the “thick dark fog” of his past so he could heal.
SeedsSeeds · 2022
Seeds
2022
MovieDrama
Without parents to guide them, two girls reflect on the love their parents modeled and the grief of their loss.
Grey's AnatomyGrey's Anatomy · 2005
Grey's Anatomy
8.22005
SeriesDrama
Follows the personal and professional lives of a group of doctors at Seattle's Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital.

Filmography

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Her StoryHer Story · 2016
Her Story
6.62016
SeriesDrama
Her Story is about two trans women in Los Angeles who have given up on love, when suddenly chance encounters give them hope. Violet is drawn to Allie, a reporter who approaches her for an interview, while career-driven Paige meets James, the first man she’s considered opening up to in years. Will they risk letting what they are stand in the way of being loved for who they are? Trans women in the media have long been punchlines, killers, indications of urban grit, pathetic tragedies, and dangerous sirens. Rarely have they been complex characters who laugh, struggle, and grow, who share strength in sisterhood, who seek and find love. Her Story depicts the unique, complicated, and very human women we see in queer communities, and explores how these women navigate the intersections of label identity and love.

Director