11th Annual Indigenous Film & Arts Festival

Coming Next Week - Join Us

October 7-13, 2014

Please join us at all our Festival events 

PRELIMARY SCHEDULE
 

Tuesday October 7, 5:30 - 7:30 PM
Art Opening: Raven Cry Message from the
Stronghold, with Artist Walt Pourier   
Reception at 5:30 p.m.

Artist's Talk by Walt Pourier at 6:00 p.m.

University of Denver Museum of Anthropology

Sturm Hall Room 102
2000 E. Asbury, Denver 80208

Wednesday October 8, 7:00 - 9:00 PM
Master Fancy Basket Maker Florence
Benedict - Katsitsienhawi
Conversation w/ director RJ Joseph (invited), Morris

Te Whiti Love, James Hagadorn, and Mervyn Tano

Dessert & Coffee Reception
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
2001 Colorado Blvd., Denver 80205

Thursday October 9, 7:00 - 9:00 PM
The Migration and Ingredients: Hawai'i
Nighthorse-Campbell Native Health Bldg.
Anschutz Medical Campus
13055 East 17th Avenue, Aurora 80045

Friday October 10, 6:30 - 8:30 PM
Luisa Torres
Q&A with Luisa's granddaughters
Su Teatro, 721 Santa Fe Drive, Denver 80204 

Saturday October 11, 6:30 - 9:00 PM
White Lies
Discussion led by Morris Te Whiti Love
Su Teatro, 721 Santa Fe Drive, Denver 80204

Sunday October 12, 6:00 - 8::30 PM
This May Be The Last Time (Espoketis
Omes Kerreskos)
Discussion led by director Sterlin Harjo
History Colorado
1200 Broadway, Denver 80203

Monday October 13, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.

Luisa Torres
Q&A with Luisa's granddaughters
Colorado College
Edith Kinney Gaylord Cornerstone Arts Center Screening Room

825 North Cascade Avenue, Colorado Springs 80903

FILM SYNOPSES

Ingredients: Hawai'i, by director Robert Bates, introduces us to farmers, chefs, food banks and backyard gardeners all seeking to revitalize locally grown and traditional foods. The stories harken back to a time when Native Hawaiians developed systems of food production that were part of complex social, political and land management systems. The film raises questions about the future of agriculture in Hawai'i as family farms and local growers see the continued urbanization of agricultural land. At its heart, the film is about relationships and o'hana: chefs connecting with elementary school students learning to garden; community college interns working at an organic farm; even the filmmaker standing thigh-deep in mud helping to weed and plant taro in a new lo'i. (OpticNerve Productions and Super 8 Cowboys, 2012, 32 Min.).

Luisa Torres, produced by Jack Parsons and Jack Loeffler. This classic documentary presents a profile of Luisa Torres, a 79-year-old elder who lives a traditional life on a small farm in the village of Guadalupita in northern New Mexico. Luisa practices traditions that have remained virtually unchanged for generations, a life shared by her parents and grandparents before her and her neighbors and her neighbors' parents. Through Luisa's recollections we see her commitment to hard work and the goal of self-reliance. At the kitchen table with her husband Eduardo, she talks of marriage and sharing. As she harvests medicinal roots and herbs, Luisa talks of living in balance with the seasons. In her garden she remembers the goodness of the earth, which has given her flowers and food for the table; and asks that she be returned to it with little ceremony and with thanks for a full life. (Chip Taylor Communications, 1990, 48 min.).

Master Fancy Basket Maker Florence Benedict - Katsitsienhawi, Director R.J. Joseph (Cree). This elder profile presents Florence Benedict, an elder of the Akwesasne Community of the Mohawk Nation, and master in the art of sweet grass and black ash splint basketry. Florence talks about the learning basket making from her grandmother and aunties, how she taught her daughters and granddaughters, and how they in turn assist in her basket making. Through Florence's story, as told by the many voices of her family and members of the community, we see the evolution of a Mohawk tradition that weaves family together across the generations. (Moccasin Path Productions, 2013, 49 min.).

The Migration, Director Sydney Freeland (Navajo). In a future wracked by global warming and controlled by an authoritarian government, an American Indian family goes into hiding, holding out one last hope for the planet's survival. (Intertribal Entertainment, 2008, 10 min.).

This May Be The Last Time (Espoketis Omes Kerreskos),  by Director Sterlin Harjo (Seminle Creek), presents a history of the ceremonial music of the Creek Nation, as he traces the mysterious death of his grandfather in 1962 and the role Creek song played in his family's history of grief.  Through interviews with fellow tribal members and elders who took part in the search for his grandfather, Harjo discovers how the hymns were also influenced by musical traditions from Scottish and Appalachian cultures and African American slave communities across the southeast, following a musical thread that dates back to the Trail of Tears.  The film takes us back to a time when the boundaries between cultures were more porous, shows us the key role the hymns have played in maintaining strong families and community resilience, and the fragility of their continued existence.  "Creek hymns aren't just historically important," says Harjo, "they are intrinsic to our culture. In times of tragedy and hardship, we often turn to hymns as a way of seeking emotional and spiritual support."  (This Land Films and Bond/360, 2013, 93 min.).

For a complete Festival schedule, email film@iiirm.org or see the posts on our website, www.iiirm.org and on Facebook: Indigenous Film & Arts Festival.