A pivotal moment occurs when George is 15, after the alleged mutilation of Vern Traversie, a blind Lakota elder who went to Rapid City Regional Hospital for heart surgery in 2012 and emerged with what appeared to be the letters KKK cut into his torso.

[6] Much of George's coming of age is shown in the film through his growing role of leadership at AIM protests designed to shut down the alcohol sales at Whiteclay.

Towards the end of the film, George becomes disillusioned with AIM and the activist lifestyle, due to repeated failures and the lack of impact their actions seem to have.

They are demonstrated through a series of animations which depict key moments in Dull Knife family history and are based on paintings created by Guy.

Nebraska-based artist Michael Burton worked with Guy, creating the painted stop-motion animations in his Lincoln, NE studio.