Doylestown Natives To Premiere Film Documenting The Lenape Nation

DOYLESTOWN, PA — "Keepers of the Way," a intimate portrait of Pennsylvania's Lenape Nation and its challenging spiritual journey to heal past wounds and keep a culture alive, will make its public premiere on Sunday with two showings at the County Theatre in Doylestown.

Directed and produced by Doylestown natives Evan Cohen and Elijah Lee Reeder, the film is told through the eyes of the Lenape people as they retrace the same path that their ancestors followed during the infamous Walking Purchase and realizing how much land was taken by the early American colonists from beneath their feet.

The film, which is shot in Bucks and Lehigh counties, then follows as the tribe gathers for a healing ceremony the following day.

"You're going to have a great theatrical experience coming out to see 'Keepers of the Way,'" said Reeder. "You're not just going to see the film, you will be engaging with the Lenape. You're also getting the opportunity to inform yourself of the roots of the land that you're living on and some of the traditions and some of the travesties that took place on that land and ways we can begin to heal those travesties. Overall it's going to be an enriching experience."

Adds Cohen, "To me, the most exciting part is that from start to finish, this is a grassroots experience that is right in our backyard. It's about a group who some people might not have any awareness of. It's also about an event in history that took place in our backyard that many might not know about. And then it's brought full circle by connecting people to the Lenape, connecting people with this community that needs help, that needs more support, that needs more awareness."

The public premiere follows a successful festival circuit for the film, including 13 private showings across the nation, including AmDocs, Cleveland International and St Louis International. The young filmmakers, with the assistance of Joe Montone who is providing Puck as an after show reception, are now excited to host the film’s first public premiere in a town very special to them.

A scene from "Keepers of the Way." (Contributed)

"I couldn't imagine a better place to show the film than the County," said Cohen. "This is also ancestral Lenape land. We're also screening in November, which is Native American Heritage Month. And the icing on the cake is the County Theatre is just a gorgeous, wonderful art house
theater. They have been tremendous to us. There wasn't another venue in my mind. The County was always the place to unveil this important piece to the public."

Cohen, the director and editor of the project, and Reeder, who produced the film, were both born and raised in Doylestown. They met while attending Tohickon Middle School and became friends before moving on to attend Central Bucks East and Central Bucks West high schools.

Cohen studied film at the School of Visual Arts in New York before launching a successful career as a filmmaker. He now lives in upstate New York's Hudson Valley.

"This film has been a collaboration - a work in progress - between Eli and I for years now," said Cohen. "It was something conceived of six years ago and shot in 2019. We're really happy to not only be local people, but focus on a hyper-local subject matter in the local community on a really important, topical subject."

The "spark of inspiration" for the film, said Cohen, developed out of his work with a variety of indigenous groups where he gained a respect and admiration for the culture and its people.

"I asked myself, 'How can I use my position of privileged and my standing as an artist - how can I combine these things and give back? The film was ultimately born out of that idea and that inspiration," he said.

Cohen recruited Reeder, his longtime friend, who also happens to be a talented producer and filmmaker, for the project. "We partnered from there," he said.

Reeder, the son of well known Doylestown photographer Jeffrey Reeder, got into editing at the age of 12 working on his dad's photography software, including Adobe and Final Cut. He started taking on professional work when he was 18, attended Bucks County Community College and then started his own production company. He now lives near Jim Thorpe and works for the Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau as a senior producer.

"This piece and indigenous culture in general is a cause that's close to our hearts," said Reeder. "We didn't want to make this about ourselves or make it just about the film. We wanted it to have a lasting impact and transcend the film. We wanted it to not just shed light on the culture of the Lenape people, but also on how they were disenfranchised and displaced by our ancestors, particularly during the Walking Purchase."

Reeder said while many of the Lenape were relocated to Oklahoma, Canada and elsewhere, there were a lot that were left behind and "assimilated into our culture here and weren't allowed to practice their ceremonies without fear of getting arrested for a long time. They are still here and we want to make it know that they are still here and they deserve federal and state recognition, which they are currently not getting," said Reeder. "They are still fighting hard for it and are making progress, but the Lenape that are still here are not federally recognized."

In addition to raising awareness of the Lenape people, they are raising funds for the tribe by designating 50 percent of the proceeds from the two showings for the Lenape people.

The film, said Cohen, has resulted in a "really wonderful friendship" between the filmmakers and the members of the Lenape nation.

"It's been so fulfilling to do something for them and help preserve for them and put out their message. Even before filming, we spent a year and a half with them getting to know them," said Cohen. "And we didn't film until we were given permission from the tribe. In the same sense, we didn't submit the film to film festivals before getting final approval from the tribe. It's been a deeply, collaborative process, which has been so wonderful."

Members of the Lenape Nation and the filmmakers will join the audience for a post film Q&A
immediately following the screening with 50 percent of all proceeds going to the Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania.

The movie will be screened on Sunday, Nov. 12 at The County Theater, 20 E State Street, Doylestown. While the 2 p.m. showing is sold out, there are tickets available for the 10:30 a.m. showing.

After the 2 p.m. show there will be a post-film celebration at PUCK located a little
over a block away at 1 Printers alley Doylestown.

Tickets and passes are available at: https://countytheater.org/films/keepers-of-the-way
For more information, visit: www.topazcreative.com/keepers-of-the-way