Jay Silverheels
A short film on Harry Smith AKA Jay Silverheels AKA Tonto, the first native actor to star in a network TV weekly series which played on 163 television stations.
The Man Beside the Mask
Before Johnny Depp stepped into the role of Tonto, Ontario born Mohawk actor Jay Silverheels was remembered at the Tonto, the faithful ‘Injun sidekick’, in the 1950s TV series “The Lone Ranger”. Aside from his Pidgin English dialect, he became a pioneer for a generation of Aboriginal viewers – the only First Nations actor on the airwaves of the era.
The Man Beside the Mask
Before Johnny Depp stepped into the role of Tonto, Ontario born Mohawk actor Jay Silverheels was remembered at the Tonto, the faithful ‘Injun sidekick’, in the 1950s TV series “The Lone Ranger”. Aside from his Pidgin English dialect, he became a pioneer for a generation of Aboriginal viewers – the only First Nations actor on the airwaves of the era.
Helping to keep language alive, Star Wars in Navajo
Bones of Crows
From the beginning, Metis-Dene writer-director Marie Clements had planned to shoot parts of her new film, Bones of Crows, at the Kamloops Indian Residential School. She established a relationship with the community to provide support to cast and crew members who belonged to that region. A week before the shoot, however, it was announced that 215 suspected unmarked graves were discovered on the site. “Obviously we’re a big machine, and as a production we’re thinking we’ll have to move and we better start on that right away,” Clements says in an interview. To her surprise, the organizers asked the team to continue with their plans. “They wanted the truth to be seen and heard.” “The blunt reality of it – that we’re working on a subject and we’re in the presence of it – it’s not in the past. It gave us a heightened consciousness,” Clements says. “We had to focus – for those families, for those babies that were found, and connecting our own families with that experience.
more here
Women Of The White Buffalo
Women of the White Buffalo – A documentary by Deborah Anderson
A matriarchal society upended by centuries of genocide and colonialism has disenfranchised the Lakota women and simultaneously reinforced their roles as the backbones of their communities and the keepers of their people’s ancient wisdom. These are the powerfully rich stories of the brave women and children living in one of the poorest places in the United States.
Sacheen Littlefeather
Rest In Power Sacheen Littlefeather
The civil rights activist who famously declined Marlon Brando’s 1973 Best Actor Academy Award has passed on at the age of 75.
News article here
Sacheen Littlefeather
About F**kin time
Oscars apologises to Littlefeather after 50 years – BBC News
Sacheen Littlefeather rejected the award on Marlon Brando’s behalf over representation in film.
Comanche vs. Predator
Comanche Nation vs. ‘Predator’
‘Prey,’ the latest movie in the ‘Predator’ film franchise, premiers in August and will be released in full Comanche language
Lakota Nation vs. United States
Lakota Nation vs. United States premieres at Tribeca Film Festival. Written and narrated by acclaimed Oglala poet Layli LongSoldier, co-directed by Jesse Short Bull and Laura Tomaselli, with original soundtrack by Raven Chacon, this powerful new documentary is a searing testament to the strength of the Oyate and a visually stunning rejoinder to the distorted image of a people long-shaped by Hollywood.
Indigenous Acting
How Graham Greene Led The Way for an Aspiring Native American Actor (Guest Column)
Chaske Spencer shares how Native American actor Graham Green influenced his decision to become an actor.