ELISE PASCHEN
IN HER OWN WORDS
New Documentary Celebrates the Work of Osage Poet Elise Paschen and the Legacy of the Tallchief Family.
Words dance...
across the page
as we trace Osage poet and Poetry in Motion co-founder Elise Paschen’s Tallchief family heritage from Fairfax, OK and the horrors of the Reign of Terror to artistic acclaim on the world stage.
A powerful new documentary, Elise Paschen: In Her Own Words, profiles acclaimed Osage poet and Poetry in Motion co-founder Elise Paschen, while honoring her family’s extraordinary legacy.
Through rare archival images, in-depth original interview footage, and Paschen’s own evocative poetry, the film explores her heritage as the daughter of Osage prima ballerina Maria Tallchief, the family’s journey from the heart of Fairfax, Oklahoma to the world stage, and the cultural weight carried across the generations.
The documentary connects the Tallchief family’s rise to artistic acclaim against the haunting backdrop of the Reign of Terror — a dark chapter recently brought to widespread attention by the bestselling book and Oscar-nominated film Killers of the Flower Moon, whose title was inspired by a line from Paschen’s poem Wi’-gi-e.
“Elise Paschen: In Her Own Words is more than a documentary on a vital poet — it is a critical reclamation of our past. Through her lyric voice, we witness the enduring power of Osage resilience, poetic lineage, remembrance of the Reign of Terror, motherhood and a woman’s unwavering devotion to the power of poetry to reclaim story, language, and history so that it may never be erased or forgotten.”
— Rey M. Rodríguez
Chapter House Literary Journal, Institute of American Indian Arts
Support Our Work
Elise Paschen: In Her Own Words is a project supported by the Palast Investigative Fund, which was founded by investigative reporter Greg Palast to support independent journalism. Currently, the Palast team is making the documentary sequel to the film Killers of the Flower Moon, Long Knife, narrated by Robert De Niro, reveals the hidden story of a gang so powerful that they don’t operate on the street.
Donate to support our work.