Health and Resiliency: Indigenous Showcase

Image from the film "Games of the North."

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Mar 30, 2013

Q&A with special guest Bruce Harrell!

Northwest Film Forum continues its partnership with Longhouse Media to present a monthly series showcasing emerging talents in indigenous communities. This exciting program exemplifies how Native American and indigenous filmmakers are at the forefront of the industry, successfully establishing a dialogue and creating images that are challenging and changing long-established cultural attitudes towards indigenous culture.

Join us this March for two short films from the northern territories about health and cultural survival, featuring a dialogue with guest speaker Bruce Harrell (Choctaw) about his own personal road as a humble leader.

PROGRAM

Games of the North
For thousands of years, traditional Inuit sports have been vital for survival in the unforgiving Arctic. Acrobatic and explosive, these ancestral games evolved to strengthen mind, body and spirit within the community. Follow four modern Inuit athletes as they compete across the North and reveal their unique relationship to the games. As unprecedented change sweeps across their traditional lands, these athletes' stories illuminate the importance of the games today.  

>> Watch a trailer for Games of the North

Cry Rock
Less than fifteen Nuxalk language speakers and storytellers remain in Bella Coola, British Columbia. One of these elders is director Banchi Hanuse’s 80-year-old grandmother. In a technology-obsessed century, it might seem easier than ever to record Nuxalk stories for future generations, but Hanuse resists. Instead, she asks whether an electronic recording can capture the true meaning and value of these oral traditions. More importantly, can it be considered cultural knowledge?

Cry Rock examines how Nuxalk stories are more than mere words. With the passing of an elder, an invaluable link to a treasure of knowledge and experience reflecting the Nuxalk world view is lost. Immersive and revealing, Cry Rock blends interviews (set against the wild beauty of the Bella Coola Valley) with vivid watercolour animation. The film illuminates the intersection of Nuxalk history, place and spirit that are at the heart of an oral storytelling tradition.

ABOUT BRUCE HARRELL

"To excel, we must adopt a culture of compassion and understanding, and there must be a sense of urgency to gain this understanding. And our authenticity will inspire others to be better, to be bolder." —Bruce Harrell 

Leadership comes in many forms. We look towards our elders, youth, athletes and many others for inspiration and guidance. Bruce Harrell (Choctaw) speaks at this Indigenous Showcase about his path of working hard from humble beginnings and how through football and focused studies he has become an example of resiliency in modern times. (And he's a major film enthusiast!)

>> Read more about Bruce

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