Showing posts with label Utah. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Utah. Show all posts
October 4, 2025
Native Women Arrive for Ute Walk and Protest of Uranium Mill at White Mesa Ute
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| Ofelia Rivas, Tohono O'odham, and Dianna Uqualla, Havasupai, arrive for today's Ute Spiritual Walk and Protest. Photo copyright Ofelia Rivas, Censored News Native Women Arrive for Ute Walk and Protest of Uranium Mill at White Mesa Ute |
February 9, 2025
Navajo Nation is 'Back Peddling' by Allowing Uranium Transport through Dine' Communities and More Dumping on Utes
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Navajo Nation is 'Back Peddling' by Allowing Uranium Transport through Dine' Communities and More Dumping on Utes By Brenda Norrell, Censored News, Feb. 8, 2025 Translated into French by Christine Prat TUBA CITY -- Leona Morgan, Dine' co-founder of Haul No!, said the Navajo Nation is now "back peddling" by allowing radioactive uranium waste to be transported through Dine' communities. This radioactive transport from the Grand Canyon means even more deadly waste for another Native community -- the White Mesa Ute community in Utah. Speaking at a community forum in Tuba City on Saturday, Leona said there has been little or no information along the haul route. The Navajo government expects the Dine' Chapters on the route to each have an emergency preparedness plan. Leona asked if the Dine' communities are aware of this and whether the Navajo Chapters are certified to deal with radioactive emergencies. |
February 7, 2024
Celebrating Water -- 'Rumble on the Mountain' Powerful Music to Halt Uranium Mining in Grand Canyon
Hopi singer and composer Ryon Polequaptewa, spoke on the sacred cedar which lends itself to make the Hopi flute, and of the sacred space of Hopi, where there is "very little rain, but an abundance of life." Listen to his performance at Rumble on the Mountain. Screenshot by Censored News. Watch https://www.facebook.com/edkabotie
Songs from the Water
Rumble on the Mountain 10: Native Voices of the Colorado Plateau in opposition to uranium mining in the Grand Canyon
By Brenda Norrell, Censored News, February 3, 2024
Translation into French by Christine Prat
FLAGSTAFF, Arizona -- In a beautiful tribute, Ed Kabotie, Hopi, performed "The Trail," honoring those who have passed, making their journey among the stars, during the seven-hour Rumble on the Mountain at the Orpheum Theater on Saturday.
October 14, 2023
White Mesa Ute March Against International Radioactive Waste Dumping on Homeland
White Mesa Ute March Against International Radioactive Waste Dumping on Homeland
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Ute Mountain Ute Yolanda Badback welcomed all to the rally and spiritual walk to protect the White Mesa Ute community’s health, water, air, land, culture, and sacred sites from the nearby White Mesa uranium mill, and show community opposition to the mill operating as an international dumping ground for radioactive waste from around the world. The protest and walk are sponsored by the White Mesa Concerned Community and the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. Photo courtesy Greenaction. |
White Mesa Ute: 'Revolution of the Heart' March Against Uranium Mill
Spiritual march against the uranium mill poisoning White Mesa Ute today in southeastern Utah -- Photos by Ofelia Rivas, Tohono O'odham, reporting live for Censored News.
October 27, 2022
Tohono O'odham Ofelia Rivas at White Mesa Ute Sacred Walk: An Offering to Mother Earth
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| Ofelia Rivas, Tohono O'odham, encouraging walkers. |
Tohono O'odham Ofelia Rivas at White Mesa Ute Sacred Walk
An Offering to Mother Earth
Transcribed by Censored News
Standing next to Ute Grandmother Thelma Whiskers, Ofelia said, "She looks like she is by herself, but from generations since the beginning of the Earth, her ancestors are standing behind her."
October 26, 2022
'Water is Life' White Mesa Ute Spiritual March Against Uranium Mill
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“This is our home and the home of our ancestors – we are the caretakers of this land and the waters beneath it," said Yolanda Badback, White Mesa Concerned Community. "They dug up our ancestors who were buried there." Describing the dangerous disposal of radioactive waste, Badback said, "We don't drink the tap water here, we go out and purchase our water." Badback expressed her deep appreciation for the large crowd that came to walk with her. She said they are continuing this fight for the future generations. "I don't want it to expand anymore," she said of the plans to bring in radioactive waste from more regions. Badback said the Native medicine plants are no longer growing. Badback's mother, Thelma Whiskers, who has spent her life here, thanked everyone for coming. Water is Life White Mesa Ute Spiritual March Against Uranium Mill |
Article by Brenda Norrell
Photos by Grand Canyon Trust
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"The White Mesa uranium mill would not be allowed to operate near a wealthy white neighborhood in Salt Lake City, and San Juan County's Native American communities deserve the same treatment.” – Commissioner Kenneth Maryboy, Diné, San Juan County Commission. |
June 14, 2018
Apache Stronghold Sacred Journey at Bears Ears
Photos and article by Steve Pavey
Apache Stronghold Sacred Journey
Censored News
If the Poor People’s Campaign is to have any hope of creating a National Revival with a new moral narrative, it must listen first and foremost to our native spiritual leaders. This is why in part the Stronghold Sacred Journey is making its way to DC. We must listen closely and learn from our Native brothers and sisters about the 1st Chapter of America’s history and acknowledge the lies and delusions we tell ourselves about who we think we are. We have been deceived. We do not know who we are. This nations political-economic values & system have from its beginning dehumanized us all and desecrated Mother Earth and all that is sacred.
We were told by our Diné host, Eric Descheenie, that Bears Ears has always been a place for healing, for reconciliation, for reconnecting what’s broken. We had ceremony and prayers for healing this nation. As a white man with European roots present in this circle of healing, I recognize that for this reconciliation to happen we must be willing to embrace suffering, let go of the power we hold, and tell the truth about how we embody the colonizers system of values.
It is disguised all too often in our naive efforts to still wield its power for good as allies. It will be a temptation for those of us in the Poor Peoples Campaign to make poverty into our enemy and jump to political solutions. But it requires spiritual ones which will then have political impacts. And as the originator of the first Poor Peoples Campaign, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "This revolution of values requires us to see the enemy in the evils of materialism, racism and militarism that founded this country." Our native brothers and sisters who are leading this sacred journey will not only help us see these evils more clearly, but will show us how to pray and become human again.
Copyright Steve Pavey, no portion may be used without permission.
We were told by our Diné host, Eric Descheenie, that Bears Ears has always been a place for healing, for reconciliation, for reconnecting what’s broken. We had ceremony and prayers for healing this nation. As a white man with European roots present in this circle of healing, I recognize that for this reconciliation to happen we must be willing to embrace suffering, let go of the power we hold, and tell the truth about how we embody the colonizers system of values.
It is disguised all too often in our naive efforts to still wield its power for good as allies. It will be a temptation for those of us in the Poor Peoples Campaign to make poverty into our enemy and jump to political solutions. But it requires spiritual ones which will then have political impacts. And as the originator of the first Poor Peoples Campaign, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "This revolution of values requires us to see the enemy in the evils of materialism, racism and militarism that founded this country." Our native brothers and sisters who are leading this sacred journey will not only help us see these evils more clearly, but will show us how to pray and become human again.
Copyright Steve Pavey, no portion may be used without permission.
March 8, 2018
Interior E-mails Reveal Interior Shrinking of Bears Ears was for Oil, Uranium and Sports Hunters
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| Sports hunters used their connection to fellow hunter Donald Trump, Jr., to lobby for the opening for more of Bears Ears to hunters. Photo from Interior e-mails. |
Interior E-mails Reveal Interior Shrinking of Bears Ears was for Oil, Uranium and Sports Hunters
Interior has land auction scheduled for Bears Ears area land on March 20, 2018, unless it is halted
Article by Brenda Norrell
Censored News
The New York Times reports that oil was the reason for the shrinking of Bears Ears. The article also reveals Interior meetings with a uranium company, Energy Fuels Resources, concerning uranium at Bears Ears.
The 20,000 Interior e-mails also reveal the interest in available coal at Grand Staircase Escalante and natural gas at the Canyon of the Ancients.
Further, Interior Sec. Ryan Zinke planned a private dinner with the head of a sportsmen group, Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, a connection made possible by Donald Trump, Jr., who went hunting with the head of the sportsmen's group in Utah.
Sportsmen were lobbying the Interior for hunts of the free roaming bison, elk, big horn sheep, cougar, black bear, and more, in the Bears Ears area.
The e-mails also reveal the sarcastic attitude of the head of the Bureau of Reclamation toward Native Americans, as shown below, one of 20,000 e-mails which the New York Times gained access to.
The statements from Native American Nations opposing the shrinkage of Bears Ears and destruction are included in these e-mails.
One e-mail points out how little Zinke knows about Indian Tribes, after Zinke suggested Tribes become corporations.
The e-mails also show motorcyclists contacting the Interior, eager to gain access to back trails.
(Below) Interior Sec. Zinke posted this photo during his visit to Bears Ears, as the Interior prepared to open more areas for exploiters. Hunters contacted Zinke after hunting with Donald Trump Jr, according to e-mails. The Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife continued to support Zinke in November, when Zinke promoted big game hunts in this news release.
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New York Times -- Oil was central in decision to shrink Bears Ears, internal e-mails show
Alan Mikkelsen is the Bureau of Reclamation's Deputy Commissioner.
Shrinking Bears Ears National Monument: Inside the Interior Department Decision
The New York Times filed a Freedom of Information Act request for copies of documents related to the decision by the Trump administration's Department of Interior to shrink two National Monuments, a special category of federal lands intended to protect them from development. The Times received 25,000 pages of documents, but only after it filed a lawsuit in federal court. Here are a few of the key ones.
Objections from Utah Delegation Even Before Bears Ears Created
Utah State Board of Education Objected Too, Citing Mineral Rights
Indian Tribe Supported Creating Bears Ears
An Early Look by Trump Era Interior: Metals and Fossil Fuels at Bears Ears
Interior Notices Patagonia/Google videos re Bears Ears
Intervention by Sen Orrin Hatch's Office
Hatch's Office: This New Boundry Would Exclude "All Known Minerals Conflicts"
One of Many Efforts by Outdoor Industry to Intervene
Minerals Review at Bears Ears, Examined Again
Indian Tribes Call for Bears Ears to be Left as Is
Hunting Group Intervenes Too, With Photos of Kills
Interior Department Official Criticizes Indian Tribes
Formal Review of National Monuments Begins
Zinke Travels to Utah, Discusses Concerns with State Officials
Zinke Schedule to Visit Bears Ears
More Questions about Mines and Impact of National Monuments
Staff Report on Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument
Coal Potential at Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument
Staff Report on Bears Ears
Current and Former National Park Service Employees Voice Their Opinion p.138
White House Decides to Keep Interior Memo Justifying Move to Shrink Monuments Private
"To be remembered" National Wildlife Federation
Natural Gas Production at Canyons of the Ancients
FYI to Interior Bosses: Outside Magazine on National Monuments Debate
Energy Fuels Resources Meeting Details
Indian Tribes Repeat Support for Maintaining Monument
Motorcyclists Welcome Access to More Federal Lands
Read more:
January 24, 2018
'Akicita' Premiere -- Standing Ovation for Water Protectors at Sundance Film Festival
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| At the premiere of Akicita: The Battle of Standing Rock, the filmmakers said, "We are overwhelmed by the love and support from today’s screening of AKICITA: THE BATTLE OF STANDING ROCK. Thank you to everyone who came out!" Watch video below: video link on Twitter and clip below from Facebook https://twitter.com/twitter/statuses/955969562083704832 |
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January 11, 2018
Eight Indigenous Made Films at Sundance Film Festival 2018
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Genesis 2.0 / Switzerland, Directors: Christian Frei, Maxim Arbugaev (Yakut/Buryat), Producer: Christian Frei — On the remote New Siberian Islands in the Arctic Ocean, hunters search for tusks of extinct mammoths. When they discover a surprisingly well-preserved mammoth carcass, its resurrection will be the first manifestation of the next great technological revolution: genetics. It may well turn our world upside down.
NEXT
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We the Animals / U.S.A., Director: Jeremiah Zagar, Screenwriters: Daniel Kitrosser, Jeremiah Zagar, Producers: Jeremy Yaches, Christina D. King (Creek and Seminole Nations), Andrew Goldman, Paul Mezey — Us three, us brothers, us kings. Manny, Joel and Jonah tear their way through childhood and push against the volatile love of their parents. As Manny and Joel grow into versions of their father and Ma dreams of escape, Jonah, the youngest, embraces an imagined world all his own. Cast: Raul Castillo, Sheila Vand, Evan Rosado, Isaiah Kristian, Josiah Santiago.
Spotlight
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Sweet Country / Australia, Director: Warwick Thornton (Kaytej Nation), Screenwriters: Stephen McGregor, David Tranter (Alyawarra Nation) — Australian western set on the Northern Territory frontier in the 1920s, where justice itself is put on trial when an aged Aboriginal farmhand shoots a white man in self defense and goes on the run as posse gathers to hunt him down.
Short Films
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Mud (Hashtł'ishnii) / U.S.A., Director and screenwriter: Shaandiin Tome (Diné) — On her last day, Ruby faces the inescapable remnants of alcoholism, family and culture.
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The Violence of a Civilization without Secrets / U.S.A., Directors and screenwriters: Adam Khalil, Zack Khalil (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, Jackson Polys (Tlingit) — An urgent reflection on Indigenous sovereignty, the undead violence of museum archives and post-mortem justice through the case of the "Kennewick Man," a prehistoric Paleoamerican man whose remains were found in Kennewick, Washington State in 1996.
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Nuuca / U.S.A. / Canada, Director: Michelle Latimer (Métis/Algonquin) — The oil boom in North Dakota has brought tens of thousands of new people to the region and with that has come an influx of drugs, crime and sex trafficking.
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I Like Girls / Canada, Director/Screenwriter: Diane Obomsawin (Abenaki) — Charlotte, Mathilde, Marie and Diane reveal the nitty-gritty about their first loves, sharing funny and intimate tales of one-sided infatuation, mutual attraction, erotic moments and fumbling attempts at sexual expression.
Documentary Premieres
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Akicita: The Battle of Standing Rock / U.S.A., Director: Cody Lucich, (Estom Yumeka Maidu Tribe of Enterprise Rancheria), Producers: Heather Rae, Gingger Shankar, Ben-Alex Dupris (Colville) Standing Rock, 2016: the largest Native American occupation since Wounded Knee. Thousands of activists, environmentalists and militarized police descend on the Dakota Access Pipeline in a standoff between oil corporations and a new generation of Native warriors. This chronicle captures the sweeping struggle, spirit and havoc of a people’s uprising.
20th Anniversary Archive Screening
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Smoke Signals / U.S.A., Director: Chris Eyre (Cheyenne /Arapaho); Screenwriter: Sherman Alexie (Spokane/Coeur d'Alene) The chronicle of athletic and charming Victor Joseph from the Salmon Indian Reservation really begins when he learns of his father’s premature and sudden death. With no money, he accepts the offer of his quirky and garrulous childhood buddy, Thomas-Builds-the-Fire, to pay for the trip, but only if he goes along. Their ensuing odyssey becomes an exploration of social and personal being, but this is not a typical account laced with angst and despair. Eyre and Alexie have fused their cultural legacy with a cinematic vision that is fresh, honest, and deeply cynical of the trite images and ideas about what it is to be Indian in America.
Native Filmmaker Lab Fellows
These two Fellows participated in the Native Filmmakers Lab with their projects in May 2017 and will end their year-long Fellowship at the Festival with ongoing support, screenings, guided film discussions, and networking events. At the Lab, these fellows worked with a cast and crew to practice shooting scenes from their short films under the expert creative mentorship of Program alumni, Creative Advisors and Program staff. This Fellowship encourages Native filmmakers to hone their storytelling and technical skills in a hands-on and supportive environment. Following the Lab, Fellows receive a year-round continuum of support.
Shaandiin Tome (Diné), Mud (Hashtł’ishnii)
On her last day, Ruby faces the inescapable remnants of alcoholism, family and culture.
Erin Maile Lau (Kanaka Maoli), Ka Mahina a me Ka Pō (The Moon & the Night)
In rural Hawai‘i, a teenage girl must confront her father after he enters her beloved pet in a dogfight.
Full Circle Fellows
The Full Circle Fellowship Program, which began in 2014 with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, is a year-long program for 18-24 year-old Native filmmakers from New Mexico and Michigan. The Fellows receive an immersive experience in the world of independent film and attend screenings, participate in guided film discussions, and connect with leaders of the Indigenous film community. The Fellowship—which has its launch at the Festival—focuses on developing these Native youth filmmakers through workshops and training opportunities, and links talented young storytellers to education and career pathways across fields of independent filmmaking, using structural strategies where Native communities heal by telling their own stories.
Mandolin Eisenberg (Taos Pueblo) is a mixed-media artist. Since starting college she has focused her efforts on film. From a young age Mandolin has been inspired by creation, initially taking up drawing and then discovering a love for writing. Her passion for writing and art turned into a deep love for stories and storytelling. As a filmmaker and storyteller, Mandolin hopes to create new realities that will impact the world. Mandolin currently attends the University of New Mexico, where she studies in the Interdisciplinary Film and Digital Media Program with a concentration in Directing and Writing.
Kaitlin Lenhard (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians) is a recent graduate of Michigan State University with degrees in Media and Information, and Global Studies in the Arts and Humanities. Kaitlin’s film interests are largely centered in film language and how film language can be used as a bridge for Indigenous communities that have been denied their languages through colonization.
Nick Sowmick (Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe), 18, is a student at Beal City High School in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. His interests include listening to music, watching and making films, and helping his local and tribal community.
Joseph Ernest Wemigwans (Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe), 18, has loved films all his life and, especially, paying attention to the details of how they are crafted.
Time Warner Fellows
Jhane Myers (Comanche/Blackfeet), Time Warner Story Fellowship
Jhane Myers (Comanche/Blackfeet) is a Time Warner Native Producing Fellow in the Native American and Indigenous Program at the Sundance Institute. She was selected for the Fellowship with the project Words From A Bear, a documentary currently being directed by Jeffrey Palmer (Kiowa) on the life of Pulitzer prize winning Kiowa author N. Scott Momaday (House Made of Dawn; The Way To Rainy Mountain). The film is slated for broadcast in 2019 on PBS’ American Masters. Myers served as an associate producer on the documentary film, LaDonna Harris Indian 101, about acclaimed Comanche activist LaDonna Harris, which aired on PBS in 2014. And, she served as Associate Producer on Defending the Fire, a documentary about Native American warriors currently playing the film festival circuit. Early in her career, Myers established herself as a great cultural and community resource for Native-content projects being produced by networks and studios including: Monsters of God (Plan B/TNT); Magnificent Seven (MGM/Columbia Pictures); Wind River (Weinstein Co.); The Lone Ranger (Walt Disney/Jerry Bruckheimer Films); And, Apocalypto (Icon Ent/Touchstone). After working with so many non-Native created projects about Native people, Myers began to seek out a producing career to support Native filmmakers and storytellers to help bring their stories to fruition. She is a recipient of the 2018 Time Warner Story Fellowship.
Jennifer Akana Sturla (Kanaka Maoli), Time Warner Producer Fellowship
Filmmaker Jennifer Akana Sturla was Born to a Hawaiian beauty queen and an aerospace engineer from New Jersey. Jennifer’s film work has frequently examined her Native Hawaiian heritage and her USC thesis film Kamea won top prizes including Best Short at the Hawai‘i International Film Festival. Subsequent projects have included shorts, a narrative feature developed by Sony Pictures, and a feature documentary on Native Hawaiian singer-songwriter Israel “IZ” Kamakawiwo‘ole, currently in production. Jennifer has spent over twenty years working in film and television. In addition to filmmaking, she currently teaches production at California State University, Northridge and UCLA Extension. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in literature from the University of California, Santa Cruz and her Master of Fine Arts in film and television production from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. She is the recipient of the 2018 Time Warner Native Producer Fellowship with her project The Untitled “IZ” Project.
Lauren Monroe, Jr. (Blackfeet), Time Warner Producer Fellowship
Lauren Monroe Jr. is an accomplished visual artist, filmmaker, and enrolled member of the Blackfeet Tribe. He is currently in development on the six-part docuseries Horse Nations with ZPZ Productions (Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, Mind of a Chef, MeatEater). He previously worked on the films Walking Out, The Ballad Of Lefty Brown, and 2016 Oscar Nominee Winter Light. He currently serves as the Cultural Coordinator for the Indigenous Masters of Education program at the University of Calgary, and is producing his directorial debut Kills Last – a post-apocalyptic thriller based on traditional tribal coup stories and told primarily in the Blackfeet language. He earned his MFA in Screenwriting through the Institute of American Indian Art in Santa Fe. He is the recipient of the 2018 Time Warner Producer Fellowship with the project Horse Nations.
Merata Mita Fellowship
At the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, Sundance Institute will announce the recipient of our annual Fellowship named in honor of the late Māori filmmaker Merata Mita, New Zealand's first Indigenous female filmmaker. In addition to being a global advocate for Indigenous voices, Merata was a trusted Creative Advisor and Artistic Director at the Native Lab, and a dear friend to the Institute. The Merata Mita Fellowship is supported by the Consulate General of Canada, Indigenous Media Initiatives, Anonymous, Fenton Bailey and Billy Luther, and Sarah Luther. Each year Sundance Institute identifies a Native or Indigenous filmmaker from a global pool of nominees to award a cash grant and provide a year-long continuum of support with activities including a trip to the Sundance Film Festival, access to strategic and creative services offered by Sundance Institute artist programs, and mentorship opportunities.
The Fellowship honoree will be announced Monday, January 22nd.
Additional Fellows
These Fellows are being supported with grants and fellowships from other programs within Sundance Institute and the Native American and Indigenous Program.
Zack Khalil (Ojibway), The Art of Nonfiction Fellowship
Adam Shingwak Khalil (Ojibway), The Art of Nonfiction Fellowship
Razelle Benally (Diné/Lakota), Feature Film Development Fellowship
Philip Sanchez (San Felipe Pueblo), Rauschenberg Fellowship, Sundance Documentary Film Program
Sky Bruno (Kanaka Maoli), Ignite Fellowship
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| Akicita: The Battle of Standing Rock |
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| Smoke Signals anniversary showing |
Sundance Institute
Wednesday, January 10th, 2018
Schedule for Park City, and Salt Lake City, Utah showings:
http://www.sundance.org/pdf/film-guide/SFF18_PPG_Grid.pdf
Following President and Founder Robert Redford’s original vision, Sundance Institute has remained committed to supporting Native American artists throughout the Institute’s history. This support has established a rich legacy of work and has supported more than 300 filmmakers through labs, grants, mentorships, public programs, and the platform of the Sundance Film Festival.
The Native American and Indigenous Program has a global focus and through its work strengthens Indigenous cinema. Filmmakers supported over the years include: Sterlin Harjo (Seminole/Muskogee), Taika Waititi (Te Whānau-ā-Apanui), Billy Luther (Diné/Hopi/Laguna Pueblo), Andrew Okpeaha MacLean (Iñupiaq), Aurora Guerrero (Xicana), Sydney Freeland (Diné), Ciara Leina’ala Lacy (Kanaka Maoli), Lyle Mitchell Corbine, Jr. (Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians) and Shaandiin Tome (Diné).
This year, eight Indigenous-made films will be premiering at the Sundance Film Festival, January 18-28, in Park City, Utah. In addition, there will be a special 20th Anniversary Archive Screening of Smoke Signals, directed by Chris Eyre (Cheyenne/Arapaho) with the screenplay by Sherman Alexie (Spokane/Coeur d’Alene). This is also our opportunity to introduce the Native Program’s filmmaker Fellows for the coming year.
Feature Films
World Cinema Documentary Competition
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Wednesday, January 10th, 2018
Schedule for Park City, and Salt Lake City, Utah showings:
http://www.sundance.org/pdf/film-guide/SFF18_PPG_Grid.pdf
Following President and Founder Robert Redford’s original vision, Sundance Institute has remained committed to supporting Native American artists throughout the Institute’s history. This support has established a rich legacy of work and has supported more than 300 filmmakers through labs, grants, mentorships, public programs, and the platform of the Sundance Film Festival.
The Native American and Indigenous Program has a global focus and through its work strengthens Indigenous cinema. Filmmakers supported over the years include: Sterlin Harjo (Seminole/Muskogee), Taika Waititi (Te Whānau-ā-Apanui), Billy Luther (Diné/Hopi/Laguna Pueblo), Andrew Okpeaha MacLean (Iñupiaq), Aurora Guerrero (Xicana), Sydney Freeland (Diné), Ciara Leina’ala Lacy (Kanaka Maoli), Lyle Mitchell Corbine, Jr. (Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians) and Shaandiin Tome (Diné).
This year, eight Indigenous-made films will be premiering at the Sundance Film Festival, January 18-28, in Park City, Utah. In addition, there will be a special 20th Anniversary Archive Screening of Smoke Signals, directed by Chris Eyre (Cheyenne/Arapaho) with the screenplay by Sherman Alexie (Spokane/Coeur d’Alene). This is also our opportunity to introduce the Native Program’s filmmaker Fellows for the coming year.
Feature Films
World Cinema Documentary Competition
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Genesis 2.0 / Switzerland, Directors: Christian Frei, Maxim Arbugaev (Yakut/Buryat), Producer: Christian Frei — On the remote New Siberian Islands in the Arctic Ocean, hunters search for tusks of extinct mammoths. When they discover a surprisingly well-preserved mammoth carcass, its resurrection will be the first manifestation of the next great technological revolution: genetics. It may well turn our world upside down.
NEXT
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We the Animals / U.S.A., Director: Jeremiah Zagar, Screenwriters: Daniel Kitrosser, Jeremiah Zagar, Producers: Jeremy Yaches, Christina D. King (Creek and Seminole Nations), Andrew Goldman, Paul Mezey — Us three, us brothers, us kings. Manny, Joel and Jonah tear their way through childhood and push against the volatile love of their parents. As Manny and Joel grow into versions of their father and Ma dreams of escape, Jonah, the youngest, embraces an imagined world all his own. Cast: Raul Castillo, Sheila Vand, Evan Rosado, Isaiah Kristian, Josiah Santiago.
Spotlight
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Sweet Country / Australia, Director: Warwick Thornton (Kaytej Nation), Screenwriters: Stephen McGregor, David Tranter (Alyawarra Nation) — Australian western set on the Northern Territory frontier in the 1920s, where justice itself is put on trial when an aged Aboriginal farmhand shoots a white man in self defense and goes on the run as posse gathers to hunt him down.
Short Films
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The Violence of a Civilization without Secrets / U.S.A., Directors and screenwriters: Adam Khalil, Zack Khalil (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, Jackson Polys (Tlingit) — An urgent reflection on Indigenous sovereignty, the undead violence of museum archives and post-mortem justice through the case of the "Kennewick Man," a prehistoric Paleoamerican man whose remains were found in Kennewick, Washington State in 1996.
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Documentary Premieres
.
20th Anniversary Archive Screening
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Smoke Signals / U.S.A., Director: Chris Eyre (Cheyenne /Arapaho); Screenwriter: Sherman Alexie (Spokane/Coeur d'Alene) The chronicle of athletic and charming Victor Joseph from the Salmon Indian Reservation really begins when he learns of his father’s premature and sudden death. With no money, he accepts the offer of his quirky and garrulous childhood buddy, Thomas-Builds-the-Fire, to pay for the trip, but only if he goes along. Their ensuing odyssey becomes an exploration of social and personal being, but this is not a typical account laced with angst and despair. Eyre and Alexie have fused their cultural legacy with a cinematic vision that is fresh, honest, and deeply cynical of the trite images and ideas about what it is to be Indian in America.
Native Filmmaker Lab Fellows
These two Fellows participated in the Native Filmmakers Lab with their projects in May 2017 and will end their year-long Fellowship at the Festival with ongoing support, screenings, guided film discussions, and networking events. At the Lab, these fellows worked with a cast and crew to practice shooting scenes from their short films under the expert creative mentorship of Program alumni, Creative Advisors and Program staff. This Fellowship encourages Native filmmakers to hone their storytelling and technical skills in a hands-on and supportive environment. Following the Lab, Fellows receive a year-round continuum of support.
Shaandiin Tome (Diné), Mud (Hashtł’ishnii)
On her last day, Ruby faces the inescapable remnants of alcoholism, family and culture.
Erin Maile Lau (Kanaka Maoli), Ka Mahina a me Ka Pō (The Moon & the Night)
In rural Hawai‘i, a teenage girl must confront her father after he enters her beloved pet in a dogfight.
Full Circle Fellows
The Full Circle Fellowship Program, which began in 2014 with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, is a year-long program for 18-24 year-old Native filmmakers from New Mexico and Michigan. The Fellows receive an immersive experience in the world of independent film and attend screenings, participate in guided film discussions, and connect with leaders of the Indigenous film community. The Fellowship—which has its launch at the Festival—focuses on developing these Native youth filmmakers through workshops and training opportunities, and links talented young storytellers to education and career pathways across fields of independent filmmaking, using structural strategies where Native communities heal by telling their own stories.
Mandolin Eisenberg (Taos Pueblo) is a mixed-media artist. Since starting college she has focused her efforts on film. From a young age Mandolin has been inspired by creation, initially taking up drawing and then discovering a love for writing. Her passion for writing and art turned into a deep love for stories and storytelling. As a filmmaker and storyteller, Mandolin hopes to create new realities that will impact the world. Mandolin currently attends the University of New Mexico, where she studies in the Interdisciplinary Film and Digital Media Program with a concentration in Directing and Writing.
Kaitlin Lenhard (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians) is a recent graduate of Michigan State University with degrees in Media and Information, and Global Studies in the Arts and Humanities. Kaitlin’s film interests are largely centered in film language and how film language can be used as a bridge for Indigenous communities that have been denied their languages through colonization.
Nick Sowmick (Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe), 18, is a student at Beal City High School in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. His interests include listening to music, watching and making films, and helping his local and tribal community.
Joseph Ernest Wemigwans (Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe), 18, has loved films all his life and, especially, paying attention to the details of how they are crafted.
Time Warner Fellows
Jhane Myers (Comanche/Blackfeet), Time Warner Story Fellowship
Jhane Myers (Comanche/Blackfeet) is a Time Warner Native Producing Fellow in the Native American and Indigenous Program at the Sundance Institute. She was selected for the Fellowship with the project Words From A Bear, a documentary currently being directed by Jeffrey Palmer (Kiowa) on the life of Pulitzer prize winning Kiowa author N. Scott Momaday (House Made of Dawn; The Way To Rainy Mountain). The film is slated for broadcast in 2019 on PBS’ American Masters. Myers served as an associate producer on the documentary film, LaDonna Harris Indian 101, about acclaimed Comanche activist LaDonna Harris, which aired on PBS in 2014. And, she served as Associate Producer on Defending the Fire, a documentary about Native American warriors currently playing the film festival circuit. Early in her career, Myers established herself as a great cultural and community resource for Native-content projects being produced by networks and studios including: Monsters of God (Plan B/TNT); Magnificent Seven (MGM/Columbia Pictures); Wind River (Weinstein Co.); The Lone Ranger (Walt Disney/Jerry Bruckheimer Films); And, Apocalypto (Icon Ent/Touchstone). After working with so many non-Native created projects about Native people, Myers began to seek out a producing career to support Native filmmakers and storytellers to help bring their stories to fruition. She is a recipient of the 2018 Time Warner Story Fellowship.
Jennifer Akana Sturla (Kanaka Maoli), Time Warner Producer Fellowship
Filmmaker Jennifer Akana Sturla was Born to a Hawaiian beauty queen and an aerospace engineer from New Jersey. Jennifer’s film work has frequently examined her Native Hawaiian heritage and her USC thesis film Kamea won top prizes including Best Short at the Hawai‘i International Film Festival. Subsequent projects have included shorts, a narrative feature developed by Sony Pictures, and a feature documentary on Native Hawaiian singer-songwriter Israel “IZ” Kamakawiwo‘ole, currently in production. Jennifer has spent over twenty years working in film and television. In addition to filmmaking, she currently teaches production at California State University, Northridge and UCLA Extension. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in literature from the University of California, Santa Cruz and her Master of Fine Arts in film and television production from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. She is the recipient of the 2018 Time Warner Native Producer Fellowship with her project The Untitled “IZ” Project.
Lauren Monroe, Jr. (Blackfeet), Time Warner Producer Fellowship
Lauren Monroe Jr. is an accomplished visual artist, filmmaker, and enrolled member of the Blackfeet Tribe. He is currently in development on the six-part docuseries Horse Nations with ZPZ Productions (Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, Mind of a Chef, MeatEater). He previously worked on the films Walking Out, The Ballad Of Lefty Brown, and 2016 Oscar Nominee Winter Light. He currently serves as the Cultural Coordinator for the Indigenous Masters of Education program at the University of Calgary, and is producing his directorial debut Kills Last – a post-apocalyptic thriller based on traditional tribal coup stories and told primarily in the Blackfeet language. He earned his MFA in Screenwriting through the Institute of American Indian Art in Santa Fe. He is the recipient of the 2018 Time Warner Producer Fellowship with the project Horse Nations.
Merata Mita Fellowship
At the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, Sundance Institute will announce the recipient of our annual Fellowship named in honor of the late Māori filmmaker Merata Mita, New Zealand's first Indigenous female filmmaker. In addition to being a global advocate for Indigenous voices, Merata was a trusted Creative Advisor and Artistic Director at the Native Lab, and a dear friend to the Institute. The Merata Mita Fellowship is supported by the Consulate General of Canada, Indigenous Media Initiatives, Anonymous, Fenton Bailey and Billy Luther, and Sarah Luther. Each year Sundance Institute identifies a Native or Indigenous filmmaker from a global pool of nominees to award a cash grant and provide a year-long continuum of support with activities including a trip to the Sundance Film Festival, access to strategic and creative services offered by Sundance Institute artist programs, and mentorship opportunities.
The Fellowship honoree will be announced Monday, January 22nd.
Additional Fellows
These Fellows are being supported with grants and fellowships from other programs within Sundance Institute and the Native American and Indigenous Program.
Zack Khalil (Ojibway), The Art of Nonfiction Fellowship
Adam Shingwak Khalil (Ojibway), The Art of Nonfiction Fellowship
Razelle Benally (Diné/Lakota), Feature Film Development Fellowship
Philip Sanchez (San Felipe Pueblo), Rauschenberg Fellowship, Sundance Documentary Film Program
Sky Bruno (Kanaka Maoli), Ignite Fellowship
http://www.sundance.org/blogs/program-spotlight/8-indigenous-made-films-premiering-at-the-2018-sundance-film-festival
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