INSIDE NMAI
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DINÉ SPOTLIGHT: A SHOWCASE OF NAVAJO FILM
BY JOSHUA STE VENS
Chasing the Light director Larry Blackhorse Lowe.
6th World
b. Dreams A
horse ruminates on his life, an astronaut finds the key to save humanity in a strange new world, a young girl and her teddy bear harness the power of imagination to create futuristic technology – storylines vastly different, yet which share a common thread. Each is a work cre-
ated by a Navajo filmmaker. The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in
New York, George Gustav Heye Center, celebrates these artists and more with its newest program, Diné Spotlight: A Showcase of Navajo Film, in collaboration with New York University’s Center for Media, Culture and History. The showcase coincides with the recent opening of the exhibition Glittering World: Navajo Jewelry of the Yazzie Family. The proliferation of talented cinematic artists from the Navajo Na-
tion has created a wealth of award-winning content. Their material is engaging and thought-provoking, often visceral and heart-wrenching and sometimes uniquely comedic. The Museum’s Film and Video Cen-
50 AMERICAN INDIAN SPRING 2015
ter has selected two feature-length films and several short films which represent many of the best artists working today to be screened during a two-day event. The free program will run April 9 and 11. The showcase will open with Sydney Freeland’s Drunktown’s Fin-
est, a Sundance-selected film also executive-produced by Robert Red- ford. The script was revised over the course of six years before filming in 2013. Closing the showcase is Larry Blackhorse Lowe’s Chasing the Light. The film explores heavy themes, including suicide and drug use. It will have its New York premiere at the showcase. Other artists whose works will be screened include both veteran
filmmakers and newcomers: Nanobah Becker, Velma Kee Craig, Me- lissa Henry, Bennie Klain, Shoni De La Rosa, Donavan Seschillie, Deidre Lynn Peaches, Christopher Cegielski and Christi Bertelsen. The showcase will feature roundtable discussions with Freeland, Blackhorse Lowe, Craig and Becker, including a panel discussion at New York University on April 10.
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