Native Americans first appeared on film in 1895 but were excluded from any meaningful role in the production of their own cinematic images for virtually the entire century to follow, and they continue to be marginalized in the entertainment industry today. Over the last 25 years, however, a renaissance in independent First Nations filmmaking has occurred. Indeed, since the 1970s, First Nations communities, after centuries-old legacies of genocide, displacement, forced assimilation, poverty, alcoholism, and demeaning media images, have worked incrementally to take command of their destinies and their representation. First Nations filmmakers aim to reach mainstream audiences and Native communities while working to recuperate tribal languages, spirituality, and community. Financed variously by tribal communities and non-Native sources, these films have been guided by Indian eyes, i.e. directed by First Nations. We also see the beginning development of a Film Nations film aesthetic: different ways of perceiving space and time, stories that are circular rather than linear, landscapes which are both real and allegorical. This program presents works produced in Canada and the United States, representing a cross-section of tribal communities.—University of California, Los Angeles Film & Television Archive.

Through Indian Eyes: Native American Cinema was organized by the UCLA Film & Television Archive with support in part by the National Endowment for the Arts and curated by Jan-Christopher Horak, Dawn Jackson (Saginaw Chippewa), Shannon Kelley, Paul Malcolm, Valerie Red-Horse Mohl (Cherokee), and Nina Rao. Program notes are adapted from the UCLA Film & Television Archive’s Through Indian Eyes: Native American Cinema catalogue.

Want a pass to this series? Join the Silver Screen Club at the Supporter level or above and bring along a guest for free! LEARN MORE