AMERICAN MASTERS: Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On

By Jennifer Robinson / Web Producer

Published November 18, 2022 at 3:08 PM PST

Stream now with KPBS Passport on KPBS+ / Watch Friday, Nov. 21, 2025 at 7 p.m. on KPBS 2

Over a career spanning six decades, Cree musician, artist and activist Buffy Sainte-Marie has used her platform to campaign for Indigenous and women’s rights and inspired multiple generations of musicians, artists and activists. Following a world premiere at The Toronto International Film Festival in 2022, AMERICAN MASTERS “Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On” premieres nationwide in honor of Native American Heritage Month.

Experience the story of the Oscar-winning Indigenous artist from her rise to prominence in New York’s Greenwich Village folk music scene through her six-decade groundbreaking career as a singer-songwriter, social activist, educator and artist.

Directed by Madison Thomas, the film chronicles Sainte-Marie’s rise in New York’s Greenwich Village folk music scene through her groundbreaking career, featuring interviews with Joni Mitchell (singer, songwriter, artist), Sonia Manzano (Maria on SESAME STREET), John Kay (lead singer-songwriter of Steppenwolf, solo artist), Robbie Robertson (musician), Jackson Browne (musician), George Stroumboulopoulos (music journalist), Andrea Warner (author) and more.

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Sainte-Marie’s career took flight when she received a rave review in The New York Times and caught the eye of Vanguard Records, who released her debut album, “It’s My Way.” Consistently recognized for being ahead of her time, Sainte-Marie’s music revealed her most sincere opinions differentiating her from the other female pop musicians of the 1960s.

"I always wanna be offering people stuff that they won't get somewhere else," says Sainte-Marie of the song "Until It's Time For You To Go," written from a woman's perspective allowing her lover to leave. Writer Andrea Warner calls the song "the actual first feminist anthem."

Early in her career she spoke out against the Vietnam War with her song “Universal Soldier,” against readily available opioids with “Cod’ine” and shared her views on romance with “Until It’s Time for You to Go,” which has been covered by artists such as Elvis, Barbra Streisand, Cher and Neil Diamond.

The iconic anti-war song "Universal Soldier" was written with the question on Buffy Sainte-Marie's mind: "Who's responsible for war?" In Sainte-Marie's frank answer, we all have an individual responsibility.

Sainte-Marie changed perceptions of Indigenous people in music, film and television. When approached to play a lead role in a 1968 episode of “The Virginian,” she famously demanded that all Indigenous roles be played by Indigenous peoples. Additionally, across her five-year stint on SESAME STREET, she was the first woman to nurse on television, and she helped create segments based on her experiences as an Indigenous woman in North America.

When Buffy Sainte-Marie was asked to play a lead role in the TV series "The Virginian," she also insisted that all of the Indigenous parts be played by Indigenous people—sparking a revolutionary conversation on representation that we are still having today.

After winning the Academy Award for writing “Up Where We Belong” from “An Officer and a Gentleman” with her then husband, Jack Nitzsche, Saint-Marie stepped out of the spotlight.

When Jack Nitzsche became stumped while scoring the film "An Officer and a Gentleman," he turned to his friend Buffy Sainte-Marie for help. Buffy played him the melody for her song "Up Where We Belong," which took on "a life of its own." The iconic song eventually went on to win several major awards, including the award for Best Original Song at the 55th Academy Awards in 1983.

She returned to music after a fourteen-year hiatus with her critically acclaimed album “Coincidence and Likely Stories.” In 2015, she beat out Drake for the Polaris Music Prize for her album “Power in the Blood.” At the age of 81, Sainte-Marie actively tours and continues to be an activist for Indigenous rights, including championing efforts to end the oppression of and violence against Indigenous women.

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Watch On Your Schedule: AMERICAN MASTERS "Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On" is available to stream with KPBS Passport, a member benefit that unlocks exclusive shows and extra content on KPBS+, KPBS+, a new free streaming video app designed for ease and enjoyment everywhere you watch including Roku, smart TVs and mobile devices. It’s locally curated for San Diego by the KPBS programming team. With a clean and intuitive design, discovering and enjoying KPBS and PBS content on-demand has never been easier.

You can also tune in live to watch our four TV channels in real time: KPBS, KPBS 2, Create, KPBS Kids 24/7. We also added a new channel - FNX (First Nation Experience).

Your KPBS Passport member benefit works on KPBS+ too! You’ll have access to even more great shows when you simply log in with your KPBS Passport account.

Credits: An Ontario-Manitoba co-production. A production of Eagle Vision, White Pine and Paquin Entertainment Pictures in association with American Masters Pictures and Vision Maker Media. Directed by Madison Thomas. Written by Madison Thomas and Andrea Warner. Lisa Meeches, Kyle Irving, Rebecca Gibson, Peter Raymont, Steve Ord, Andrew Munger, Gilles Paquin, Ray Halbritter, Randy Lennox, Michael Kantor and Francene J. Blythe-Lewis are executive producers. Lisa Meeches and Stephen Paniccia are producers. Michael Kantor is executive producer for AMERICAN MASTERS.

AMERICAN MASTERS: Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On

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