(Lincoln, Nebraska): The same year our nation celebrated its bicentennial and President Ford proclaimed a week in October as "Native American Awareness Week,"
six Native producers in public television met to charter the Native American Public Broadcasting Consortium (NAPBC), later known as Native American Public Telecommunications (NAPT) and now Vision Maker Media.
It was 1976 when these Native producers began to cultivate interest among Native American tribes to participate in developing their own media, which led to the initiation of several tribal media projects. One such project, American Indian Artists produced in 1986, was a three-part series featuring the art and lives of Dan Namingha (Hopi/Tewa), Jaune Quick-To-See Smith (Shoshone/French/Cree), and Larry Golsh (Pala Mission Indian).
In those 40 years, our organization has created more than 500 films, awarded $11 million to independent producers and held hundreds of film-screening events across the nation. Our films inspire people to look at the world through Indigenous eyes and encourage young warriors to embrace their rich culture as part of their identity.
In celebration of Vision Maker Media's 40th anniversary, a collection of 40 films will be available for free streaming beginning Nov. 1 and ending Aug. 7, 2017. Each week a different film will be available on visionmakermedia.org and americanarchive.org.
Titles for November:
Nov. 1 .................... American Indian Artists: Jaune Quick-To-See Smith
Nov. 8 .................... Way of the Warrior
Nov. 15 .................. Surviving Columbus
Nov. 22 .................. Robert Mirabal: Music from a Painted Cave
Nov. 29 .................. Vis a Vis: Native Tongues
