An independent film that was shot in Walker County will make its local debut on Oct. 12 in Chattanooga.

“Sahkanaga” a Cherokee word for the “Great Blue Hills of God,” is an 80-minute movie by Chickamauga native John Henry Summerour.

It is his first feature-length movie and was filmed in 21 days during 2009 on locations in Walker County.

“It has been something that has exceeded my expectations,” Summerour said. “And to travel with it and show it all around the world has just been icing on the cake. Coming back home to the tri-state area and showing it in Chattanooga, it’s really for me personally the climax of the entire journey.”

The film features an entirely local cast and originally premiered in Boston in April 2011.

“Some of them (cast members) had never been in front of a camera, so it was really intimidating for them to suddenly be thrust into this movie situation,” Summerour said. “Not only were they learning how to act in front of the camera, they were also re-enacting fictional versions of a real-life event that was traumatic for some of them.”

The fictionalized backdrop for the film originates from the events of Tri State Crematory tragedy, as viewed through a child’s perspective.

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