Adeana Young plays Hlaaya in Gwaai Edenshaw and Helen Haig-Brown’s Film Sgaawaay K’uuna/Edge of the Knife. Photo credit Niijang Xyaalas Productions. Copyright Isuma Distribution International. / courtesy of and copyright of Smithsonian
“There’s no longer a need to make films with the intention of creating work that’s palatable to the mainstream; audiences are meeting the filmmakers where they are, and the Native Cinema Showcase is the museum’s way of supporting this effort.” Kevin Grover, director of the National Museum of the American Indian.
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian presents the 19th annual Native Cinema Showcase in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Aug. 13–18. In this year’s installment, nearly all of the films were made by Native filmmakers; more than half were made by women, including the opening and closing films. This year’s event includes 53 films from 11 countries, representing nearly 40 Indigenous groups.
If you are reading this post from an email subscription, you’re likely have to link to the site to view this The Edge of Knife film trailer.
In an affirmation of the power of self-representation, and in recognition of the International Year of Indigenous Languages, the lineup includes films such as SGaawaay K’uuna (Edge of the Knife), the first feature-length film to be spoken entirely in the Haida language, and Wiñaypacha (Eternity), the first feature-length film shot entirely in the Aymara language. The showcase includes dialogue and narration in 20 Indigenous languages.
“More and more, Native filmmakers are able to use their medium to assert Indigenous identities on their own terms,” said Kevin Gover, director of the National Museum of the American Indian. “There’s no longer a need to make films with the intention of creating work that’s palatable to the mainstream; audiences are meeting the filmmakers where they are, and the Native Cinema Showcase is the museum’s way of supporting this effort.”
The showcase begins and ends with portraits of strong women. Tuesday evening’s feature film, Warrior Women, shows the role of women in the American Indian Movement of the 1970s from a female perspective. The closing film, Vai, incorporates languages of Oceania as it follows the journey of one woman across eight Indigenous communities throughout the Pacific Islands. Saturday’s family-friendly feature, Disney’s Ralph Breaks the Internet, brings together Disney princesses including Pocahontas as they question the stereotypical roles they fell into during past film appearances.
The showcase runs in conjunction with the Southwestern Association for Indian Arts Santa Fe Indian Market, the largest juried show of Native fine art in the world. The majority of the films will be screened at the New Mexico History Museum, and Ralph Breaks the Internet will screen outdoors at the Santa Fe Railyard Park. All screenings are free, and seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Other highlights include an appearance by Pulitzer prize-winning writer N. Scott Momaday (Kiowa), who will make remarks before the screening of the biographical film N. Scott Momaday: Words From a Bear Thursday, Aug. 15, at 7 p.m. A “State of the Arts” talk is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 16, at 3 p.m. and will feature Tlingit glass artist Preston Singletary.
N. Scott Momaday (left) receiving the National Medal of Arts from U.S. president George W. Bush in 2007 /photo courtesy of the National Endowment for the Arts / Public Domain
Navarre Scott Momaday (born February 27, 1934) is a Kiowa novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet. His novel House Made of Dawn was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1969, and is considered the first major work of the Native American Renaissance. His follow-up work The Way to Rainy Mountain blended folklore with memoir. Momaday received the National Medal of Arts in 2007 for his work’s celebration and preservation of indigenous oral and art tradition. He holds twenty honorary degrees from colleges and universities, and is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
“You see, I am alive, I am alive
I stand in good relation to the Gods
I stand in good relation to the earth
I stand in good relation to everything that is beautiful…
You see, I am alive, I am alive”
Navarre Scott Momaday, excerpt from The Delight Song of Tsoai-Talee
Followed by a discussion with activist Marcella Gilbert (Lakota and Dakota /Cheyenne River Lakota Nation) and directors Christina D. King (Seminole Tribe of Oklahoma) and Elizabeth A. Castle.
Followed by a discussion with filmmaker Gwaai Edenshaw (Haida) and musician and composer Kinnie Starr (Mohawk)
Saturday, Aug. 17
1 p.m.: Lensic Future Voices (90 min. total)
This program includes a selection of films by student filmmakers. Presented in collaboration with Lensic Performing Arts Center and Santa Fe Photographic Workshops. Introduced by Marcella Ernest (Bad River Band of Chippewa), Project Director, Lensic Future Voices.
3 p.m.: Our Stories Shorts (86 min. total)
This program reflects the best of Native storytelling as told through family history, language and tradition, often with a dose of Native humor.
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian
In partnership with Native peoples and their allies, the National Museum of the American Indian fosters a richer shared human experience through a more informed understanding of Native peoples. The museum strives toward equity and social justice for the Native peoples of the Western Hemisphere through education, inspiration and empowerment. Through two locations, it features exhibitions and programs in New York City and the National Mall in Washington, D.C. For additional information, including hours and directions, visit AmericanIndian.si.edu. Follow the museum via social media on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, where additional information will be available at #NativeCinemaShowcase.
About the Southwestern Association for Indian Arts
SWAIA’s (http://swaia.org/) mission is to bring Native arts to the world by inspiring artistic excellence, fostering education and creating meaningful partnerships. The 98th annual Santa Fe Indian Market will display the work of more than 1,100 artists from 100 tribes in more than 1,000 booths over a two-day period.
About the New Mexico History Museum
Opened in May 2009 as the state system’s newest museum, the New Mexico History Museum is attached to the Palace of the Governors National Historic Landmark, a distinctive emblem of U.S. history and the original seat of New Mexico government. The museum presents exhibitions and public programs that interpret historical events and reflect on the wide range of New Mexico historical experiences. It is a division of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs and is located at 113 Lincoln Ave. in Santa Fe.
The content of this post is courtesy of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, The Southwestern Association of Indian Arts, the New Mexico History Museum, the National Endowment for the Arts, imbd and Wikipedia.
Recent in digital publications:
* Four poems , I Am Not a Silent Poet
* From the Small Beginning, Entropy Magazine (Enclave, #Final Poems)(July 2019) * Over His Morning Coffee, Front Porch Review (July 2019) Upcoming in digital publications:
* The Damask Garden, In a Woman’s Voice (August 2019)
A busy though bed-bound poet, writer, former columnist and the former associate editor of a regional employment newspaper, my work has been featured widely in print and digital publications including: Levure littéraire, Ramingo’s Porch, Vita Brevis Literature, HerStry, Connotation Press,The Bar None Group, Salamander Cove, I Am Not a Silent Poet, Meta/ Phor(e) /Play, Woven Tale Press, The Compass Rose and California Woman. I run The Poet by Day, a curated info hub for poets and writers. I founded The Bardo Group/Beguines, a virtual literary community and publisher of The BeZine of which I am the founding and managing editor. Among others, I’ve been featured on The MethoBlog, on the Plumb Tree’s Wednesday Poet’s Corner, and several times as Second Light Live featured poet.
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“Every pair of eyes facing you has probably experienced something you could not endure.” Lucille Clifton
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