The film Smoke Signals follows two young Native American men, Victor and Thomas, as they take a road trip from Idaho to Arizona to collect Victor's deceased father's ashes. Thomas comes from a supportive family and idolizes Victor's father, Arnold, who saved him from a fire as a baby that killed his parents. However, Arnold was an alcoholic who abused Victor before abandoning the family. The film depicts the struggles of modern Native American identity and the impacts of alcoholism, while also exploring the complex father-son relationship between Victor and the father who shaped yet disappointed him.