“Missing Threads” explores the connection between family, tribal culture and children and the consequences of severing those ties.

The documentary will be played at the Vision Maker Film Festival, held bi-annually at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center. Show time is at 2 p.m. on March 13 at the Ross.

The Midwest Child Welfare Implementation Center was a five-year project to improve child welfare outcomes, housed in the Center on Children, Families and the Law. From 2009 through 2013, the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families and the center collaborated with Wisconsin’s 71 county child welfare agencies, the Bureau of Milwaukee Child Welfare and the 11 sovereign tribes in Wisconsin to improve outcomes for Indian children. The project engaged in a statewide implementation of the Wisconsin Indian Child Welfare Act, which became effective in December 2009.

One aspect of the effort was the creation of a documentary detailing the historic collaborative efforts leading to enactment of the WICWA legislation. The movie “Missing Threads” also depicts the history motivating the effort, through the compelling stories of two Native children who were removed from their homes and families and placed into either foster care or an institution for adoption.

Following the screening, there will be a panel discussion. Representatives from MCWIC will review the Wisconsin project, and a representative from Nebraska Appleseed will reflect on how the documentary relates to recent legislative developments in Nebraska.