Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian Center for Contemporary Arts Southwestern Association for Indian Arts present
The Tenth Annual
Native Cinema Showcase, August 19-22, 2010
(Photos: Top: Fillm 'Samson and Delilah' Photo 2 art: Film shorts. Photo 3: Reel Injun director Neil Diamond with singer Robbie Robertson; Photo 4: Reel Injun: Russell Means at Wounded Knee. Photo 5: CBQM)
Center for Contemporary Arts, 1050 Old Pecos Trail
Cathedral Park, Indian Market, downtown Santa Fe
Santa Fe, NM, 505-982-1338,
http://www.ccasantafe.org/Visit our YouTube page:
http://www.youtube.com/user/NMAIFVC 
Festival Info
Festival passes : $50/$40 NMAI and CCA members, includes priority admission to all screenings and events; Tickets to Cinematheque screenings: $9.50 general admission, $8.50 students/
seniors, $8 NMAI, CCA, SWAIA members
All screenings and programs at the Cinema at Cathedral Park are free.
Passholders are seated first and all others on a first-come, first-served basis.
Further information: The Center for Contemporary Arts / 505-982-1338 /
http://www.ccasantafe.org/Locations
Center for Contemporary Arts · 1050 Old Pecos Trail, Santa Fe · 505-982-1338
Cinema at Cathedral Park · two blocks from the Plaza · 213 Cathedral Place,
Santa Fe
Festival trailers:
http://www.youtube.com/user/NMAIFVC·
FILMS
Opening Night Showcase
Reel Injun
Opening Night Film, Toronto Film Festival
7:30p Thursday & 3:30 pm Saturday
Cinematheque
Special screening: 7pm Wednesday, Taos Center for the Arts
This entertaining and insightful documentary explores the Hollywood Indian
through a century of cinema. Travelling through the heartland of America, director
Neil Diamond looks at how the myth of "the Injun" has influenced the worldʼs
(mis)understanding of Native peoples. Diamond combines clips from hundreds of
classic and recent films with candid interviews (Clint Eastwood, Chris Eyre, Robbie
Robertson, Sacheen Littlefeather, John Trudell, and Russell Means, among others)
to trace the evolution of cinemaʼs depiction of Native people from the silent film era
to today.(Canada, 2009, 86 min.)
In person: Neil Diamond, Chris Eyre
Preceded by White Fawnʼs Devotion (d. James Young Deer, U.S., 1910, 10 min.).
The earliest surviving film by a Native director, this action-drama was added to the
National Film Registry in 2008.
Neil Diamond (Cree) is a leading aboriginal filmmaker, journalist, and
photographer who hails from Waskaganish, on the coast of James Bay, and is a
founder of Rezolution Pictures in Montreal. Recent credits include The Last
Explorer (2009), screening in this yearʼs Showcase, and One More River (2004),
winner for Best Documentary, Rendez-vous du cinéma québecois.
Boy
8p Saturday & Sunday
Cinematheque
In 1984, on the rural east coast of New Zealand, "Thriller" is changing kidsʼ lives,
and two brothers spin fantasies about their absent father. Taika Waititi expands his
Oscar-nominated Two Cars, One Night (NCS 2004) into a hilarious and heartfelt
coming-of-age tale about heroes, magic, and Michael Jackson that follows three
characters: the brothers Boy and Rocky and their dad Alamein (played by Waititi),
whom Boy imagines to be a deep-sea diver and friend of the King of Pop.
Alameinʼs return, however, forces Boy to confront his fantasies and enter the real
world. (New Zealand, 2010, 87 min.)
Invited: Taika Waititi
Preceded by Powerball (d. Gary Farmer, 2009, 5 min.). A day in the life of two
down-on-their-luck Santa Feans.
Taika Waititi (Maori) is a visual artist, actor, writer, and director. His short film Two
Cars, One Night (NCS 2004) was nominated for an Academy Award in 2005 and
Tama Tu (NCS 2006) won five festival awards. His first feature Eagle vs. Shark,
starring Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords), was released internationally in
2007. Waititi has won New Zealandʼs top comedy award, the Billy T, and
Edinburghʼs Spirit of the Fringe Award. He is featured in the upcoming Hollywood
film Green Lantern.
CBQM 
U.S. PremiereWinner, Alanis Obomsawin
Best Documentary Award, 2009
imagineNATIVE
5:30 Friday
Cinema at Cathedral Park
CBQMʼs far-flung listeners include Gwichʼin ladies busy with their beadwork,
solitary trappers in their cabins, and truckers heading north on the Dempster
Highway. To them, CBQM-located 100 miles north of the Arctic Circle-is more
than a radio station. It is a dependable pal, a beacon in the storm of life, a resilient
expression of identity and pride. Filmmaker and long-time listener Dennis Allen
celebrates this treasure with his nuanced, big-hearted portrait of a station and the
community that sustains it.
(Canada, 2009, 66 min.)
Dennis Allen (Gwichʼin/Inuvialuit), who hails from Inuvik in the Northwest
Territories, has worked on the popular TV series North of 60. His feature film
Someplace Better played at the Sundance Film Festival.
Finding Our Talk
U.S. Premiere
Presented in cooperation with the Indigenous Language Institute
2:30p Friday and Sunday
Cinema at Cathedral Park
By the year 2100, scientists believe more than half of the world's languages will
have disappeared. Against these tough odds, indigenous people around the globe
are fighting to rescue and restore their native languages, in often innovative ways.
This phenomenal series, produced by Paul Rickard for Aboriginal Peoples
Television Network in Canada and directed by an all-star group of indigenous
filmmakers, celebrates the work and ingenuity of educators, activists, communities,
and inventors who are racing the clock to save an enormous container of
knowledge and wisdom.
Paul Rickard (Cree) has worked as a producer, director, and cameraman in
collaboration with independent production companies and organizations, such as
Nutaaq Media Inc., Wildheart Productions, Wawatay, CBC North, and the National
Film Board of Canada. His company, Mushkeg Media, creates documentary series
for international broadcast. He was given a tribute at NCS 2006.
Jim Thorpe: The World's Greatest Athlete
6:15 pm Saturday
Cinema at Cathedral Park
From the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, where he became a national icon, to the
1912 Olympics, where he won two gold medals, and through outstanding careers
in both professional baseball and football, Jim Thorpe was one of the most
successful athletes the world has known. Tom Weidlingerʼs film, co-written by
Joseph Bruchac (Abenaki), uses interviews and astonishing archival elements to
celebrate Thorpeʼs achievements, as an athlete and as an icon for Native
Americans, during a period of tragedy and transition.
(U.S., 2009, 60 min.)
Tom Weidlinger has written, directed, and produced nineteen documentary films
that have been broadcast on national public television. His works explore themes
of social justice and human relations. He was awarded a William Benton
Fellowship in Broadcast Journalism and has received writing fellowships and
residencies at the Ragdale Foundation, the Ossabaw Island Foundation, and the
McDowell Colony.
Kissed by Lightning
Milagro Award, 2009 Santa Fe Film Festival
6 mp Friday & 5:30p Sunday
Cinematheque
Inspired by an ancient Iroquois tale, Shelley Niroʼs smart, moving, funny, and
wholly contemporary story follows the Mohawk artist Mavis (played by Kateri
Walker), who is emerging from a long period of grieving for her lost husband Jesse
(Michael Greyeyes). To help herself heal, she begins painting the stories she
remembers him telling her. Embarking with Bug, a suitor (Eric Schweig), across the
Mohawk territories from her reserve in Canada to New York City, Mavis begins to
rediscover the depth and joy of the world of the here and now.
(Canada, 2009, 90 min.)
In person: Shelley Niro
Preceded by Santa Fe (d. Sterlin Harjo, 2010, 4 min.), the latest music video from
2009 NCS opening night performer Samantha Crain.
Shelley Niro (Mohawk), a graduate of the Ontario College of Art, received her MFA
from the University of Western Ontario. Her installations, photography, painting,
and films (including It Starts With a Whisper and Honey Moccasin [NCS 2001])
have been exhibited in festivals and galleries throughout Canada, and at the
National Museum of the American Indian and the Venice Biennale.
The Last Explorer
12:45 pm Saturday
Cinema at Cathedral Park
Neil Diamond and Ernie Webbʼs film weaves documentary and reenactment to tell
the story of Diamondʼs great-uncle George Elson, who guided a team that mapped
Labrador in the early 20th century. Elsonʼs story is rich with drama, including an
earlier fatal expedition, and the filmmakersʼ discovery of possible revenge, lost
diaries, and forbidden love.
(Canada, 2009, 48 min.)
Ernie Webb (Cree), born in Moose Factory and raised in Chisasibi, has devoted his
life to telling the stories of Canadaʼs aboriginal peoples across all media. His
directing and producing credits include widely broadcast films, such as the six-part
documentary series Down the Mighty River, the cultural series Dab Iyiyuu/
Absolutely Cree and Reel Injun.
Neil Diamond (Cree) is a leading aboriginal filmmaker, journalist, and
photographer who hails from Waskaganish, on the coast of James Bay, and is a
founder of Rezolution Pictures in Montreal. Recent credits include The Last
Explorer (2009), screening in this yearʼs Showcase, and One More River (2004),
winner for Best Documentary, Rendez-vous du cinéma québecois.
Miss Navajo
Sundance Film Festival, NMAI At the Movies program
12:30 pm Sunday
Cinema at Cathedral Park
For more than a half-century, the Miss Navajo Nation competition has showcased
aspiring women leaders who can butcher a sheep, discuss the intricacies of
Navajo history, and cope with the myriad challenges of the modern world. Luther
intersperses one shy contemporary contestant with past winners (including his
mom, Miss Navajo 1966) to build a powerful portrait of the continuum that goes
back to the first Diné life-giving ancestor, Changing Woman. Luther will also show
a segment from his work-in-progress Grab, a documentary about the Thanksgiving
celebration at Laguna Pueblo.
(U.S., 2006, 60 min.)
In person: Billy Luther
Billy Luther (Navajo/Hopi/Laguna Pueblo) became the first Native American
filmmaker to receive the prestigious Creative Capital artist grant. Among his other
awards are a 2008 Media Arts Fellowship from the Tribeca Film Institute and a
Sundance Institute/Ford Foundation Fellowship. A graduate of Hampshire College,
he currently lives in Los Angeles.
Samson & Delilah
Winner, Caméra dʼOr, Cannes Film Festival
8:15p Friday & 5:30p Sunday
Cinematheque
Samson and Delilahʼs world is small-an isolated community in the Central
Australian desert. When tragedy strikes, they turn their backs on home and embark
on a journey of survival. Lost, unwanted, and alone, they discover that life isnʼt
always fair, but love never judges. In lesser hands, this story could have been a
sociological study; instead, Warwick Thornton has created a startling, deeply
moving, and richly cinematic masterpiece about love, ethnicity, and redemption.
The unforgettable Samson & Delilah is a must-see for everyone interested in the
cutting edge of filmmaking and indigenous storytelling.
(Australia, 2009, 100 min.)
Warwick Thornton (Kaytetye) has directed short dramas, including Nana (NCS
2010) and Green Bush (NCS 2005) that have played internationally and won
awards at Berlin, Melbourne, and other festivals, and has worked as a
cinematographer with award-winning Australian directors Beck Cole (Lurita/
Warrumunga) and Rachel Perkins (Arrernte/Kalkadoon).
Six Miles Deep
U.S. Premiere
4p Friday
Cinema at Cathedral Park
On February 28, 2006, hoping to prevent an unwanted housing development on
their land, members of the Iroquois Confederacy blockaded a highway near
Caledonia, Ontario. Though the confrontation generated Canadian headlines for
months, one central element of the story was ignored. Sara Roqueʼs compelling
film tells how the Iroquois clan mothers served as the voice of conscience and
source of power. As they rally their neighbors, set the rules of conduct, and
fearlessly guide the resistance movement, these women begin tapping into the
communityʼs hidden strengths and sense of pride.
(Canada, 2009, 43 min.)
Sara Roque (Ojibwe/Métis) is a media artist, writer, administrator, activist, and cofounder
of O'Kaadenigan Wiingashk, an aboriginal women's multi-disciplinary arts
collective. Her short films have played at imagineNATIVE and Splice This Super 8
Film Festival and have been broadcast on Muchmusic.
Short film programs
Indian Marketʼs Classification X winners
2:15 pm Saturday, Cinema at Cathedral Park
Classification X-the new "moving images" category of Indian Market-expands its
support to Native artists working in film and video. Like all Indian Market artwork,
these films are Native-made. This program showcases the winners from each of
four divisions: Narrative Short, Documentary Short, Animation Short, and
Experimental. The screening will be followed by a panel discussion with the
winners moderated by John Torres-Nez.
Showcase Shorts
4:30 pm Saturday and 5:30 pm Sunday, Cinematheque
This diverse selection of works from Indian Country begins with Nana (d. Warwick
Thornton, Kaytetye, Australia, 2007, 5 min.): In a little girlʼs eyes, her grandmother
is a superhero. Poi Dogs (d. Joel Moffett, U.S./Hawaiʻi, 2010, 12 min.) tells the story
of two Hawaiian teenagers-a tough-acting football lineman and a guarded tuba
player-and their awkward attempts at expressing a budding romantic interest in
one another. In Tsi tkahéhtayen/The Garden (d. Zoe Leigh Hopkins, Heiltsuk/
Mohawk, Canada, 2009, 11 min.), a mystical gardener harvests fruits from the earth
that defy everyoneʼs expectations. In The Rocket Boy (d. Donavan Seschillie,
Navajo, US, 2010, 15 min.) Calvin is determined to find his father in space, against
his motherʼs advice. Stones (d. Ty Sanga, U.S., 2009, 20 min.) tells the Hawaiian
legend of Naʻiwa and Nihipali, the last of the First People to remain on the island
after the arrival of humans. And Windigo (d. Kris Happyjack-McKenzie, Algonquin,
Canada, 2009, 11 min.) asks: Do we know what we are living through? Do we
know when we are dying?
Total run time: 74 min.
Curated and introduced by Reaghan Tarbell (Mohawk), NMAI
Family Showcase
Made possible by a generous donation from Pueblo de Niños Dental.
The Best of Animation Celebration!
1 pm Friday and 11 am Sunday
Cinema at Cathedral Park
A program of highlights from the National Museum of the American Indianʼs everpopular
annual series starts with Popol Vuh: The Quiché Maya Creation Myth (d.
Ana MarÃa Pávez, Chile, 2006, 11 min.), the story of the heroes who defeat the
gods of the underworld and transform into the sun and the moon. The Turtle and
the Shark (d. Ryan Woodward, U.S., 2008, 4 min.) tells the Samoan legend of a
man and a woman who vow to stay together. In Wesakechak and the First Spring
Flood (d. Gregory Coyes, Métis Cree, and George Johnson, Canada, 2002, 13
min.), the Creator puts Trickster on earth to care for all creatures, and in a crisis
they come to his rescue. Mayan Reign (d. José Olmos, U.S., 2008, 5 min.) uses
vivid imagery to introduce the Mayan rain god Chac. The Oneida tale Raccoon and
Crawfish (d. Four Directions Productions, Oneida, U.S., 2007, 8 min.) tells of a
fateful meeting between a scheming crawfish and a hungry raccoon. ÄŒurte-Nillas:
The (Short) Movie (d. Per Josef Idivuoma, Sámi, Sweden, 2010, 4 min.) celebrates
an ill-fated superhero determined to right all wrongs against the Sámi people. In
How People Got Fire (d. Daniel Janke, Canada, 2009, 16 min.), the 12-year-old
Tish is captivated by her grandmotherʼs story. And in The Missing Child (d.
Tshiuetin Vollant, Innu, Canada, 2008, 6 min.), a young boy makes it his mission to
find and bring his missing friend home.
Total run time: 67 minutes
Raven Tales
11 am Saturday
Cinema at Cathedral Park
This remarkable Emmy-nominated series-the first Native-produced series to be
internationally broadcast-transforms aboriginal folktales into entertaining, funny,
and well-crafted computer-animated works. Each follows Raven, the powerful and
mischievous Trickster common to many cultures. We will screen two of the 25-
minute segments: the creation story How Raven Stole the Sun and Raven and the
First People, a story of how humans arrived on earth.
Total run time: 50 minutes
In person: Executive producer/writer Chris Kientz (Cherokee)
Exhibits and Special Events
Seven Cities of Trash
Opening 5-7 pm Thursday / Open 12-8 pm daily during festival
Though their traditional lifeways are based in the natural world, many Native
communities today find themselves deluged by trash. This exhibit features objects
-steel cans, automobile parts, scrap wood, glass bottles, used tires, and loose
paper-drawn from heaps on southwestern Pueblos and reservations and reintegrated
into various contexts as public art. These works from the ongoing project
of artist Jake Fragua (Jemez/San Felipe Pueblo) are designed to provoke dialogue
about the exploitation of Native lands and encourage environmental conservation.
In addition to the exhibition in the Munoz-Waxman Gallery, site-specific
installations will be created in areas throughout Santa Fe. A video documenting the
process will be projected at the CCA.
This Show Is Called Vagabond
Opening 5-7 pm Thursday / Open 12-8 pm daily during festival
The Humble Collective, a group of students from the Institute of American Indian
Arts, gives thanks to vagabond artists: our detectives of truth. This show includes
found objects that Humble arranged and painted on. It explores our homes, our
relation to our lands and more importantly, our tongues.
SWAIA Classification Filmmakers Panel
Immediately following the Class X screening, 2:15 pm Saturday, Cathedral Park
FREE
The ancient art of storytelling enters Santa Fe Indian Market in a new form:
filmmaking. Join a discussion with SWAIA's freshman Class X winners, learn about
Native grassroots filmmaking and hear about the future for SWAIA and Native
cinema.
Gary Farmer and the Troublemakers
10-11:30 pm Saturday
FREE
Indian Countryʼs favorite blues band, this tireless touring group returns home for its
annual NCS show. In addition to Farmer on harmonica and vocals, the band
consists of John Longbow on bass, Denton McCabe on lead guitar, Nick Mendoza
on rhythm guitar and vocals, Arne Bey on drums, and Neon Napalm on vocals.
Their CDs include Love Songs and Other Issues and Lovesick Blues.
Humble Music Show
5-9 pm Friday
by donation
The Wakesingers headline this collection of local musical groups, showcasing the
range of talent in a variety of styles and genres. Presented by the Humble
Collective.
Ofelia Rivas, founder of the O'odham Voice Against the Wall, served as cochair of the important Working Group on Indigenous Peoples at the Bolivia Climate Summit in Cochabamba in April. Ofelia lives on Tohono O'odham land near the US/Mexico border and is a constant voice of human rights as a traditional, ceremonial O'odham. She is one of two women receiving the 2010 Borderlinks Women on the Border Award and advocates for the right of Indigenous Peoples to travel in their own territories without harassment. She is a supporter of the Zapatistas and the struggle for autonomy and dignity in Mexico. (Photo Ofelia Rivas, center, at Bolivia Climate Summit by Ben Powless, Mohawk.) 
Festival Info
