Nine Little Indians

NINE LITTLE INDIANS is the harrowing story of the nine Charbonneau sisters and their childhood schoolmates who endured horrific abuse at St. Paul’s Indian Mission School in Marty,South Dakota, in the mid-20th century. 

Executive produced by Leonardo DiCaprio and Tony Robbins, the documentary chronicles  the Charbonneau sisters’nearly two-decade-long legal battle to hold the Catholic Church accountable for the heinous crimes inflicted upon the plaintiffs listed on their lawsuit, the survivors unwilling to be named, and the children who had perished at St. Paul’s— among them, Geraldine “Gerri” Charbonneau’s baby. 

Told through cinematic recreations, vérité of survivors and surveyors at the school, and first-person accounts from both the accusers and the accused, NINE LITTLE INDIANS is a story of hope in the face of injustice and highlights the now elderly sisters’ two-fold goal: to change South Dakota laws to protect future generations, and to bring missing children home. 

Listen to Director Shannon Kring and Yvonne “Pat” Carbonneau on NPM’s Friday LIVE Extra radio program.