photo courtesy: Doug Miles

NAICA favorite Georgina Lightning was recently in town to show a trailer of her forthcoming feature Older Than America. Rooftop Films and IFC made this screening possible. The event, contrary to the title, was held at a park on 12 Street, between Avenue A and 1^st Ave–for those of you who give a shit—in East Village. Some of you may claim that I am biased but I assure you the highlight of the event was Georgina’s trailer. The rest of the trailers emphasized “white neurosis” under the guise of art. Please don’t make me explain this. Either you get it or you don’t. Or better yet take a class at the New School. I’m sure they offer a course on this subject! Please see my interview in the 2007 summer edition with Georgina for more details on her feature: http://www.thenaica.org/edition_six/ppt/georgina/intro.htm
In other news yours truly also participated in a screening/ Q&A for Artic Son directed by Andrew Walton at The ImaginAsian theatre on 59^th street in midtown Manhattan. This event was co-presented with American Documentary/POV and Big Mouth films. The morning of the screening I made a brief plug of the event on First Voices Indigenous Radio hosted by Tiokasin Ghosthorse on WBAI FM. This was my first time on the radio save the time I called a fitness show seeking advice on how to get rid of flabby arms. I was excited-my cherry was popped on public radio! Back to the screening…OMG…the audience was rowdy and irreverent. In spite of the presence of their teachers, the students chatted incessantly with each other, and even had the nerve to talk on their cell phones.

HELLO!

How many times have you read DO NOT TALK DURING THE MOVIE or TURN OFF YOUR CELL PHONES on the screen before a movie began? Obviously not these kids! The only part of the film that commanded everyone’s attention was the scene where Stanley Jr. skinned a rabbit. After the screening I reluctantly moved to the front of the theatre to sit on a panel with the Arctic Son producer Dallas Brennan Rexer and Irene Villasenor of POV. The point of this segment was to answer questions or offer commentary on the film. Yikes! My initial skepticism was soon eradicated by the articulate questions offered by the audience. Yes these kids did pay attention! In retrospect I realize that I was too harsh on these kids. In fact, at a recent screening at my friend’s home, I too was offering commentary at inappropriate moments. However I was drunk on cheap wine…so there!

Last week Longwood Gallery at Hostos College in the Bronx held an opening reception for The Fort Apache Connection. The show is a multimedia presentation that, “explores the falsehoods and realities of Apache images that have been historically conjured up and perpetuated by American popular culture.” I was late to this event due to, well…you really don’t give a shit…right? The point is I made it there. I arrived famished expecting to gorge myself with cheese and wine. But upon my arrival I noted there was no food. Shit! Everything had already been consumed. Yup, tell-tale sign of the presence of Indians-empty plates and trash left on the floor. However the focus was the work on the walls. Various artists such as Jason Lujan, Pena Bonita, Bob Haozous, Carm Little Turtle and Douglas Miles had their work on display. I immediately went to Doug and Nadema and offered my congratulations. For those of you who don’t know, Doug lives down the block from my grandmother in TC ALLEY, USA. I meandered through the gallery and noted all the work. But I was mostly interested—yes I am biased—in Doug’s work. Frankly I was so tired that I opted to pose a few questions to Doug via e-mail. Yes, I get tired and prone to lassitude…but you’d rather read his description of his work than me, right?

Sonny Grant: Although your work has been presented in various forms, you mostly use skateboards as a canvas, Why and What message are you trying to convey?

Douglas Miles: Using skateboards as a canvas is a way I challenge myself as an artist and designer. Its also fun to design something that has form and function, not something that just hangs on a wall or sits on a shelf. I don’t think in terms of having a “message”. Just trying to make something interesting that people can relate/respond to. If there are messages I guess they’re multilayered. I think the medium is the message. People ascribe different meanings to my work. There is a long list of short words people use when discussing my work: “ Pop, Modern, Street, Hip-Hop, etc…” There is also a short list of long words people use to describe my work: “ contemporary, appropriation, confusing, etc.” Go ahead and add your own new long or short words here.

SG: For those of us who aren’t familiar with your company would you briefly tell us about it and how it came into being?

DM: Apache Skateboards came into being purely out of necessity. “ Necessity is the mother of invention.” With no Native Skateboard companies at the time we started, we pioneered a little known thing into a small movement of sorts. Now Apache Skateboards (AS) has become a “brand.” We want to make it clear that we are proud of who we are and what we’ve done, Yet AS is not just me but a team of dedicated skaters, filmers, photographers, and artists who serve as our “ Broad of Directors.” AS is for everyone. We created a product that anyone should be proud to support.

SG: Your work synthesizes the images of “Boricua” and contemporary and traditional Apaches, What is the connection between these two cultures?

DM: The skateboards and art designed for the Fort Apache Connection art show at Hostos College (curated by Nadema Agard) were done as a tribute to two strong yet often marginalized cultures in America. Apache people from the southwest, Puerto Rican people from an area in the South Bronx formerly known as: Fort Apache. The work in the show is not really a synthesis but a tribute to two very strong and vibrant cultures and meant to discuss sociopolitical parallels in how each culture had been (mis) treated, for better or worse.

SG: Do you feel that you are commodifying Apache culture by presenting it within a pop context?

DM: No I do not feel that at all. Apache culture is too vast, complex, living, vibrant, expressive unknown, mysterious and specific to commodify. If I am commodifying anything it is my own artwork for my own fun and challenging purposes. I think it is necessary that we (Natives) create our own companies, products, and projects so we don’t have to be blindly sold whatever is out there. You can’t help but notice we live in a country/culture of consumers. I like Pop art but I do not consider myself a “Pop Artist” nor do I consider what I or my peers do as “Pop Art.” Museums that take cultural and intellectual property under the guise of preservation, then charge an entry fee to view one’s own culture? Authors and historians who write about Native cultures as “so-called experts” and receive payment for these books and articles? Non-Native companies who use Native-themes and images to sell products such as , cigarettes, butter, orthopedic shoes, clothes toys, movies, films, documentaries etc? Of all these various groups it is rare that the Indian community gets to see revenue from these various products or projects.

SG: Who or What influenced your work?

DM: First and foremost?

Allan Houser

Allan Houser

And Allan Houser

Did I say Allan Houser?

Of course you can see all types of influence. But currently?
Yatika Fields, Rose Simpson, Micah Wesley, Brian Brannon, Cey Adams, Batman, Bob Haouzous aka Mecha-Godzilla, subway sweat, ( sing sweet chariot down deadened streets.) Cannupa, HUMBLE, The Apache Wars, Velvet Underground, The Sopranos, Reubrn Ringlero, Lil’ Doug, Irwin Lewis, Exvoto Design, Eyejammie, Akira, Taxi Driver, South Bronx Hip-Hop era, Rahzell, Joe Conzo, Nadema Agard, Bruce Lee, Scorcese, Apachelypse Now, Ernie Panicolli, The Land of Plenty Skateboards, Cowtown, Charlie Parker, The RZA, Martha, Gracie, Bekah, Cece, India, T.C. Alley spray painted walls, & that cholo kid who is doing ill work on a little scrap of paper in the back of the classroom.

SG: Please tell us about your forthcoming projects?

DM: Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Apache Starship Enterprise: It’s a five year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man or woman has gone before.

Thanks Doug!

P.S. this is shameless self promotion time…a personal essay of mine was published in the most recent edition of Talking Stick Native Arts Quarterly….check it out!

http://www.amerinda.org/newsletter/10-4/index.html

TORONTO OR BUST!

Four Sheets To The Wind
A Film By Sterlin Harjo
Opens the 8th Annual
imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival
Wed. Oct. 17
This screening is presented by CTV globemedia

This film was honoured with a Special Jury Prize for Acting at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival for Torontonian Tamara Podemski, marking not only the first time a Native North American has won an award for acting at Sundance, but also a first for any Canadian actress.

Tamara Podemski will be in Toronto and available for interviews,
as well as Director Sterlin Harjo and actor Cody Lightning.

Opening the 8th Annual five-day imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival will be the Canadian premiere (and Sundance hit) FOUR SHEETS TO THE WIND, the feature debut by Sterlin Harjo. A wonderfully crafted, fresh and delightful film that tells the story of Cufe Smallhill (Cody Lightning) who in the midst of mourning his father’s recent passing, realizes he is compelled to explore the world outside the reservation and find a more fulfilling life. His sister, Miri (Tamara Podemski) comes from Tulsa for the funeral and invites Cufe to visit her in the big city, opening the door to his new world.

A multi-disciplinary artist, born and raised in Toronto and now living in Los Angeles,Tamara Podemski calls upon her Ojibway/Israeli roots to inspire her art. The acting has spanned across all mediums with such credits as Dance Me Outside, The Rez, Ready Or Not, North of 60, Moose TV, New Amsterdam, numerous theatre productions, and, most notably, as member of the Original Canadian Cast of RENT (she also played Maureen in the Broadway Company of RENT). Tamara is the lead singer of SPIRIT NATION, and recently garnered four nominations for her latest self-titled album, TAMARA. MEEGWETCH, a music video of Tamara’s collected awards both in the US and Canada including a Best Female Artist recognition from the 2006 Aboriginal Music Awards.

Also screening on opening night is the world premiere of renowned Canadian author Thomas King’s video short I’M NOT THE INDIAN YOU HAD IN MIND. Produced by Big Soul Productions, this spoken word video explores the stereotypical portrayal of First Nations people in the media and offers insight into how First Nations people today are changing old ideas and empowering themselves in the greater community.

Thomas King was born in Sacramento, CA and is of Cherokee, German and Greek descent. He has a PhD in Literature and American Studies and has taught Native Studies at the University of California, the University of Lethbridge, and at the University of Minnesota, where he was also Chair of American Indian Studies. King is currently a professor of creative writing at the University of Guelph. In addition to teaching, Thomas King is a published author. His numerous works include novels, poems, anthologies and radio scripts.

“The imagineNATIVE Festival is a unique opportunity for Indigenous artists from across the globe to share stories past, present and future using contemporary media,” says imagineNATIVE Interim Executive Director Kerry Swanson. “Audiences of all backgrounds will be challenged, surprised and inspired by the diverse and innovative work on offer.”

This year’s festival offers more than 125 works by Indigenous people at the forefront of innovation in film, video, radio and new media, running from October 17 through the 21.

imagineNATIVE, in partnership with the Royal Ontario Museum’s (ROM) Institute for Contemporary Culture (ICC) presents SHAPESHIFTERS, TIME TRAVELLERS AND STORYTELLERS, a BMO Financial Group Presentation. The exhibit is the first ICC-organized exhibition in the Roloff Beny Gallery in the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal. This thought-provoking exhibition features new and existing works by eight leading contemporary Aboriginal artists: Suvinai Ashoona, Faye HeavyShield, Cheryl L’Hirondelle, Isuma Productions (Zacharia Kunuk and Norman Cohn), Biran Jungen, Nadia Myre, Kent Monkman and American artist Alan Michelson. Five of the eight works have been created specifically for this exhibition. Incorporating evocative objects from the Museum’s collections, the exhibition features video, sound, sculpture, drawings, painting and performance art to explore the ways in which past and present continue to merge and shape one another. Co-curated by Candice Hopkins and Kerry Swanson in partnership with the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival, SHAPESHIFTERS, TIME TRAVELLERS AND STORYTELLERS will be on display from October 6th, 2007 to February 28th, 2008.

As part of the exhibit, imagineNATIVE will host two special live performances in conjunction with the ROM’s Friday nights program. On Friday, October 5, 2007, Vancouver-based artist Peter Morin will perform A Return to the Place Where God Outstretched his Hands, co-presented by Winnipeg’s Urban Shaman Gallery (through the supports of the Canada Council for the Arts), On Friday, October 19, 2007, Kent Monkman, in the guise of his infamous alter-ego Miss Chief Eagle Testickle, will perform Séance as part of the imagineNATIVE Festival.
Both performances will take place at 7 pm in the Hyacinth Gloria Chen Crystal Court on the main floor of the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal.

About the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival
The imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival is an international festival that celebrates the latest works by Indigenous peoples at the forefront of innovation in film, video, radio, and new media. Each fall in Toronto, the festival presents a selection of the most compelling, distinctive Indigenous works from around the globe. The festival’s screenings, parties, panel discussions, and cultural events attract and connect filmmakers, media artists, programmers, buyers, and industry professionals. The accepted woks reflect the diversity of the world’s Indigenous nations and illustrate the vitality and excellence of our art and cultures in contemporary media. www.imagineNATIVE.org

Tickets are available starting October 1st at the Festival Box Office at the Manulife Centre (main floor, north entrance) 55 Bloor Street West (southeast corner of Bloor and Bay).

San Francisco, CA – The American Indian Film Institute (AIFI) and Title Sponsors; the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians and the SeminoleTribe of Florida are proud to announce the opening and closing night films for the 32nd annual American Indian Film Festival:

Opening the nine day Festival at Landmark Embarcedero Cinema on Nov. 2 in San Francisco, will be two captivating documentaries, “Maria Tallchief” and “Water Flowing Together”, both exploring the world of ballet through two renowned Ballet dancers.

The World Premiere of “Maria TallChief” directed by Sandra Osawa, poetically chronicles the legendary Osage dancer Maria Tallchief. Hailed as “America’s first prima ballerina” this full-length documentary includes rare ballet dance footage and exclusive interviews with Maria Tallchief as well as fellow dancers and historians. “Water Flowing Together” directed by Gwendolen Cates delves into the life of Navajo Indian/Puerto Rican New York City Ballet principal dancer, Jock Soto. Known as “one of the finest male dancers” in the world, this compelling documentary studies his connection to his heritage and follows him through the last two years of his career up to his retirement on June 19, 2005. Opening the second part of the Festival at the historic Palace of Fine Arts on Nov. 8, is the documentary “Gathering Together” and the acclaimed feature film “Four Sheets to the Wind”. “Gathering Together” by Bay – Area director James Fortier, goes behind the scenes to chronicle to the story of the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe’s first traditional regional potlatch in over a century, as host of the 2006 Tribal Canoe Journey. A coming of age drama, “Four Sheets to the Wind” directed by Sterlin Harjo, follows the story of Cufe Smallhill (Cody Lightning) after his father’s untimely death. Cufe leaves his home to visit his troubled sister (Tamara Podemeski) in Tulsa and unexpectedly meets a girl who changes his life. On Friday Nov. 9 the American Indian Film Festival will close with the World Premiere of the documentary “Making the River” and the feature – film “Imprint”. A film by Aboriginal Lens founded by Sarah Del Seronde and Paul Stoll, “Making The River”, tells the saga of Jimi Dexter Simmons. He was charged with first-degree murder of a prison guard at the Washington State Penitentiary. Faced with almost insurmountable odds that he would be convicted and executed, the Simmons Brothers Defense was formed. “Imprint” directed by Michael Linn tells the story of Shayla Stonefeather (Tonantzin Carmelo) a prominent Native American attorney who has turned away from her people and the dreams of her youth. When she returns to the Pine Ridge Indian reservation of South Dakota, her ancestral home, ghostly apparitions begin to haunt her with a frightening vision she does not want to believe. AIFI’s American Indian Motion Picture Awards Show, honoring filmmakers and showcasing contemporary Native American talent, will be held on Saturday November 10, 2007 @ the Palace of Fine Arts beginning at 6:00pm. Fourteen awards will be presented including Best Film, Best Actor and Best Documentary. The awards show will include a mix of live entertainment by established and emerging Native artists and performers including special performances by multi-talented singer Jamie Coon, violinist Swil Kanim, the 21 memberYaaw Tei Yi Tlingit Dancers from Alaska and acclaimed Taos, NM based recording artist Robert Mirabel. A complete schedule will be available on October 8, 2007 and will also be available on our website www.aifisf.com. All programs are open to the general public and will require tickets for admission. Advance Tickets available thru AIFI: 415-554-0525 visa & mastercard. On-site tickets available at the following theater venues (on day of show.) ** November is National American Indian Heritage Month. AIFI welcomes all- audiences, all-colors, to participate at festival screenings, seminars and awards show. Landmark Embarcadero Center Cinema One Embarcadero Center, Promenade Level San Francisco,CA Showtimes: Nov. 2- 7 Matinees begin @ 12noon ($5) *Box Office matinee tickets are available at 11:00am Evenings begin @ 7:00pm *Box Office evening tickets are available at 5:00PM (Opening Night $10) (Evenings $6-8) Palace of Fine Arts
3301 Lyon St.@ Bay St. San Francisco,CA Showtimes: Nov. 8-10 Evenings begin @7:30pm ($7-8) Nov. 8-9 tix available @ 6:30pm Motion Picture Awards Show begin @6:00pm * Awards Show tickets are available @ 4:30pm at the Box Office ($12-15)

A major upset for the interested citizens of New York City:
Noted actor Gary Farmer will not play with his band the Troublemakers at the upcoming (Oct 12th 2007) exhibition of artist Jay Carrier’s work to be featured in a solo show “guest curated” by Farmer himself.

No statements were given to the press at this time but the show will go on. Visit the American Indian Community House
(www.aich.org) website for further details.

Gary looks sad…Longviews and NAICA are sad too, Gary.

Really really sad.

NAICA contributor, Sonny Grant, will make his way up to the boogie down Bronx for this opening night
event featuring some of New York City’s finest Native American artists and a few Boricuas too.

Longwood Gallery @ HOSTOS opens at 5:30pm

450 Grand Concourse @ 149th Street Bronx NY

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