2026 Nellie Wong Magic of Movies Essay Contest Winners
Middle School: Grand Prize – Brooke Shackelford, Bentley School
SF Film Festival Essay – Sonder
Despite living in the golden hills of California, I’ve always resonated with the color green. It meant life, it meant nature, and it meant exploration. And when life presented me with the path of exploration of my heritage, my 7th grade self was naturally curious and excited.
I remember the excitement since I had never really known my Native American side, the pride in knowing I was part of the Kanza tribe. I remember my confusion as to why the reservation was located in Oklahoma when their stories were in Kansas. I don’t know what I was expecting, but standing on that yellow dry grass and taking a deep breath gave me the realization that in this very place, part of my family tree had grown up there, and lived their own lives that they never had the chance to share. I was seeing what little was left of my history. I knew I was lucky to see it, but I felt guilty for the traces of the past. I felt that their story wasn’t mine to tell, that I deserved to stay in the grayscales since I was only beginning to explore how the tribe grew up to be.
I’ve always been passionate about my heritage, but every time I spoke or wrote about it, I couldn’t help but feel an ounce of guilt. I was looking and speaking of yellow dry grass, but was it really my place when I was surrounded by green trees and golden hills?
Just this Tuesday, the eye-opening film Sonder illustrated to me that growing up is complicated. It reminded me to use the voice that my ancestors could not. Listening to the seven colors talk about how they grew up showed how passing through the stages of life is complicated, and the stories to tell of our lives have meaning. Sonder illustrated the intricate path in life through colors, and green resonated with me especially. The man spoke about trees, and I remembered climbing the redwood trees with my brothers. He spoke of hikes, and I thought of the times my family and I would go on our traditional hike up to “The Bench” and make hiking sticks with the fallen branches in our backyard. We created something beautiful out of the dead branches, all surrounded by green during the hiking trail.
I encourage everyone to tell their stories, even when it’s overwhelming. Sonder has reminded me how my path through life is supposed to be complicated, whether it’s made of yellow dry grass, brown hiking trails, climbing redwood trees, and relaxing around green leaves.
And while I am still exploring the path in the yellow dry grass where the Kanza people once stood, I believe the greatest stories to tell are the overwhelming and complicated ones. Taking in the world around you can be overwhelming and complicated, but Sonder helped remind me how it is important to take the time in growing up, to share it through any color. It illustrates how the path of growing up is complex, and Sonder inspired me to share my journey through my life’s exploration.
Despite living in golden hills and being born from yellow dry grass, my story has always been through green.