Moose Factory, Ontario….The Sixth Annual Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival will be celebrated in Moose Factory Island, a community located in Northern Ontario along the James Bay coast. The festival is a grassroots community cultural event, which presents works by new, emerging and established filmmakers with featured school and community events. Our annual program showcases stories that resonate with issues and perspectives relative to the James Bay people. The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival and Video Festival 2008 will be showcasing a program that will focus on language and culture in First Nations.

‘Weeneebeg’ is the traditional Cree word referring to the waters of James Bay. The island community is situated on the Moose River that flows into James Bay. The area is called the Mushkegowuk territory populated mainly by the First Cree nations of Moose, Fort Albany, Kashechewan, Attawapiskat and Weenusk. Moose Factory is located approximately three miles from the mainland town of Moosonee and is accessible via an ice road during the festival in March.

The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival partners with local organizations, co-presenting screenings, traditional Cree feasts and festival activities at various venues throughout the community such as the Elder’s Centre, the Cree Village Ecolodge and local schools. This year’s partnership continues with imagineNATIVE Film + Media Festival to include a youth program with a selection of short films being programmed by both festivals. The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival showcases shorts, animation, documentaries and feature films as well as hands-on youth workshops with guest artists. Audience members are mainly from the Moose Factory and Moosonee area and many others who travel down the ice road along the coast from Fort Albany, Kashechewan and Attawapiskat. Guest filmmakers are invited to present their works, artists’ talks and facilitate workshops while experiencing a unique northern life with the Cree Nation.

One highlight for the 2008 festival is presenting works about First Nations languages and cultures. Some of this year’s program presents the short film Wabak by Kevin and Gilles Pensoway (CAN) from Quebec, Nkiwmowin (My Song) by Kevin L. Burton (CAN), and the premieres of Kanien’keha:ka-Living the Language by Paul M. Rickard (CAN), an established filmmaker originally from Moose Factory, Weaving Worlds by Bennie Klein (USA), Miss Navajo by Billy Luther (USA).

Another highlight will be two films that deal with teen suicide, an issue that has plagued First Nations communities for decades. Seeking Bimmaadiziwin by Kelly Saxberg (CAN), a dramatization of a young girl struggling to find herself, culture and the hope to carry on. Le Pacte (The Pact) by Yvon Dube (CAN) and Erica Pomerance (CAN), a documentary about the Atikamekw First Nation looking for new ways to solve the problems of youth suicides using their community’s own resources.

The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival has continued to present important films that address issues that all First Nation peoples deal and face in their everyday lives and we also present works that entertain our audience.

The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival is a free festival and provides unlimited access to all screenings, events and workshops. The festival is an artist and community run festival led by Executive Director/Programmer, Paul M. Rickard and Co-Executive Producer/Special Events Coordinator/Programmer, Fred D. Rickard and Consultant/Programmer, Shirley Cheechoo.

The 2008 website has been launched with the full program. Further details of screenings, visiting artists and special activities will be posted.

For updates, we invite you to please visit www.weeneebeg.ca

For media information, please contact:

Fred Rickard
Tel: 705-658-6987
Email: fredrickard@mac.com

It is hard to be a writer sometimes. Not that I have the oeuvre to really claim this personally, but I think I can safely make this assumption based in part by films I have seen involving typewriters, piles of balled-up papers and ashtrays filled with chain-smoked cigarettes. I can also base this statement on the story below:

Journalist Paul Tolme: “When I traveled to South Dakota in 2005 to write a story about black-footed ferrets, I never imagined my words about the little weasels would one day appear in a trashy romance novel. I just wanted to write an informative and entertaining piece about these endangered prairie carnivores. Three years later my story (”Toughing It Out in the Badlands“) is at the center of 2008’s sexiest plagiarism scandal.”

The scandal involves a novel by prolific romance writer, Cassie Edwards, entitled Shadow Bear. I have included the synopsis below for your convenience:

“South Dakota 1850. Before he died from the Indian arrow that pierced his body while he was hunting gold outside Fort Chance, Shiona Bramlett’s father, the colonel, revealed a shocking secret. Now, armed only with her father’s map and her courage, she’s determined to honor him-and to fulfill her own destiny.

After a fierce prairie fire, Shadow Bear, Chief of the Grey Owl Band of the Lakota tribe, is desperately looking for his missing brother Silent Arrow. His search leads him to a beautiful woman in desperate need of help. Shadow Bear loathes the white man-but he cannot help but protect her. With a passion that is undeniable, they must learn to put their mistrust aside and share their secrets before all is lost.”

Perhaps it was the pressure of maintaining her reputation as a prolific novelist that forced Cassie Edwards into the dark corner of plagiarism? Perhaps it was a deadline? I can only imagine her desperation at the thought of trying to gracefully follow up yet another love scene. What in-the-hell would Shadow Bear and Shiona talk about after their wild tryst in his tipi? And then, like manna from heaven, an answer. After what must have been hours of frantically googling “South Dakota,” she found the topic that would save her from the sloth-like terror of post-coital writer’s block: the black-footed ferret.

Shadow Bear: They are so named because of their dark legs.

Shiona: They are so small, surely weighing only about two pounds and measuring two feet from tip to tail.

Shadow Bear: What I have observed of them, myself, is that these tiny animals breed in early spring when the males roam the night in search of females…Mothers typically give birth to three kits in early summer and raise their young alone in abandoned prairie dog burrows.

Shiona: I read that ferrets stalk and kill prairie dogs during the night. Using their keen sense of smell and whiskers to guide them through pitch-black burrows, ferrets suffocate the sleeping prey, an impressive feat considering the two species are about the same weight.

Shadow Bear: In turn, coyotes, badgers, and owls prey on ferrets, whose life span in the wild is often less than two winters … They have a short, quick life.

When it comes right down to it, I can sympathize with Edwards completely. I remember a 6th grade research paper I did on the Beatles, which may or may not have included some lifted sentences from Encarta. I honestly can’t remember for sure anymore. But I do remember the quiet agony of trying to describe Ringo’s troubled childhood in meaningful-yet-concise sentences before 10pm. I got an ‘A’ on the paper, but it was still really hard.

What I’m trying to say is that Cassie Edwards should be forgiven for her literary faux pas. We all lie and cheat and even steal, whether it be words or post-it notes from the office supply closet. Nobody is without guilt. But on today of all days, Valentine’s Day, I think we should forgive Edwards and remember what she was ultimately trying to do: write about the triumphs and trials of love … and the sweaty, rippling muscles of Lakota warriors.

Part of the crowd inside the Kentler

Friday, February 8th, was the opening night of the new exhibit Native Voices at the Kentler International Drawing Space, a 501c3 gallery established in Red Hook, Brooklyn in 1990. For NAICA and Longviews, Red Hook is like going to New Jersey. That means it’s highly inconvenient to get there. We had to take a train and then a bus to get there, but I am glad we did.

(For the record, associate editor, Sonny Grant lives down the block from the gallery thes rest us live up in Queens).
Surprisingly, I say surprisingly ’cause of aforementioned distance, there was a large turnout for this all native contemporary “wordks on paper” show. More surprisingly, the crowd was ethnically diverse, not just the usual suspects we always see at these events, meaning Natives and friends of Natives.; not that there is anything wrong with the usual suspects but they’re already in the know. Contemporary native art needs to find a larger, more diverse audience, somehow the Native Voices show did exactly that.

The space itself is not unlike a lot of other small galleries in that it is basically one long hall; not exactly narrow but not wide enough to be the traditional square art space. It was large enough to contain a decent sized crowd as well as a snack and wine table at which some very good Malbec was served. For the record Longviews correspondents, Sonny Grant and myself, had two small cups each. We don’t condone drunkeness but do condone social drinking especially when the drink is actually good. For more information on the gallery check out their wesbite: www.kentlergallery.org.

The exhibit, co-curated by Raquel Chapa and Deborah Everett, was as diverse as the audience representing many genres of works on paper, as well as, levels of technical excellence. That’s a nice way of saying some of the artists seemed to not have as much technical prowess as others while some had plenty prowess but lacked conceptual knowledge or consideration. All in all though, an important step in getting native contemporary work into galleries not directly associated with the native community-not that there is anything wrong with native-centric galleries-as long as they aren’t in Santa Fe. HA!

The show runs through March 23 and makes a tour of Brooklyn stopping at Long Island University and FiveMyles. For more information on this show and other topics hit up our very first podcast of the new year located below.

Views from the gallery:

Artist, Mario Martinez points out the wine and cheese table.

Curator, Raquel Chapa, interviewed by anonymous white dudes.

Some works by Lorenzo Clayton

Frank Big Bear’s wicked cool Timezones 1985-86

Detail, Untitled (Bicultural) 2006, Artist Jason Lujan

Best in Show (solely the opinion of NAICA online and Longviews):

Kay Walkingstick’s, We’re Still Here, 2004

All photos: M Colon

 Episode 1-Happy Chinese New Year!: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

In case you haven’t noticed it……..www.thenaica.org

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That winter edition is on it's way. Momentarily. In fact by the time you read this it may very well be online!
But to get you hot and bothered here's a little taste of the of the fine reportage, review, interview, artwork
and the like coming your way at NAICA online's Winter Edition 2008:

-an exclusive interview with the up and coming Brooklyn trio, The Dust Dive. Check out there music listenable on the website and on their Myspace page-www.myspace.com/thedustdive

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-a gorgeous music video featuring Apache violinist/vocalist/guitarist,
Laura Ortman.

-a discussion with Lakota director Pierre Barrera.

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-an extensive visual review of our Artist in Residence, Jay Carrier's, work; he discusses his life in Niagara Falls New York, not Ontario, about the state of contemporary indigenous art in Northwestern New York today.

-a photo tour of a freaky old high school now turned 501c3 artist colony, and much more!

Look for upcoming blogs as we travel to film festivals up the ass: Torry Mendoza in Athens-Ohio, Sonny and Maria at Tribeca-NYC, and Renee at Cine-Austin;
an exclusive review of our favorite Native American, Val Kilmer, his music and poetry, and essays on everything from Indian Tschokes,
themed museums, Indian art collections, romance novels, and probably more about Val Kilmer.Stay tuned!www.thenaica.org

all photos: m colòn

 Gree River by The Dust Dive [3:26m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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KENTLER INTERNATIONAL DRAWING SPACE

Wednesday, February 6th, 2008

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Presents
NATIVE VOICES:
Contemporary Indigenous Art
Works on Paper

February 8 – March 23

Opening Reception: February 8, 6–9 pm

Curators' Talk: March 1, 4pm

Co-curators: Deborah Everett and Raquel Chapa

Artists:
Frank Big Bear
Jason Lujan
Jeffrey Gibson
Joe Feddersen
Miranda Belarde-Lewis
Kay WalkingStick
Lorenzo Clayton
Mario Martinez

Kentler will present a range of works on paper, from prints to
drawings, collage and installation – and it will include some of the
most exciting and vibrant work being currently made in any art
circles. The works represent a cross-section of contemporary
sensibilities, commenting on the challenges of the postmodern world.
Some deal with issues of identity, including that of being an outsider
in a mass society. The work may or may not hint at the ethnicity of
its maker, but it consistently employs powerful strategies to grapple
with modern life in a global world.

http://www.kentlergallery.org/pages/current.html

Gallery hours: Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, 12 – 5pm

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TRIBECA FILM INSTITUTE NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS-Deadline: February 8. 2008

Tuesday, February 5th, 2008

TRIBECA FILM FELLOWS 2008

The Tribeca Film Institute invites young filmmakers to witness the excitement of a major film festival while exchanging ideas, exploring the possibilites of cinema,and developing their own visions and voices through film.

This spring, TFI will select twenty NYC youth producers, ages 15-20, to be our 2008 Tribeca Film Fellows. Programming will include a creative project, panel discussion, workshops, mentoring by festival film directors, screenings, and special events, throughout the film festival. Following the festival. students will also be matched with film industry related internships and will serve as ” student ambassadors” for TFI at various youth events throughout 2008.

Requirements for Application

- Must be 15-20 years old

-Have been actively involved with video production for at least 12 months

-Have a career aspiration in some area of media and/or video/film

-must submit completed application form, work sample(note: work samples will not be returned) and letter of recommendation (from NYC media organization or film/video program instructor or staff member) by Deadline.

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