Big night for Native American stars

From left: Rory Cochrane, Christian Bale, Lynette Twobulls, Chief Phillip Whitman Jr., Joanelle Romero, Scott Cooper.

BEVERLY HILLS – The RNCI Red Nation International Film Festival (RNIFF) held their twenty-forth annual festival award ceremony in Beverly Hills on November 15, in American Indian Heritage Month. The Festival continues its tradition of exclusive rights in screening thetop American Indian & Indigneous films, each year. November 1-15, the festival hosted 58 films representing the USA, Canada, Ecuador, France, Peru, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Brazil, and Mexico; 23 of them directed by women. RNCI is proud to produce the top Native festival with the highest number of world, national and local premieres. Also, the Festival delivered a platform for the recognition of American Indian and Indigenous artistic work and culture within the entertainment industry; introducing these filmmakers to a larger global mainstream audience.
The films shown in the festival, addressed issues such as racial barriers, environmental justice and longstanding negative Native American stereotypes projected by the industry. Sacheen Littlefeather, American Indian actress, received multiple RNIFF awards for her performance in the short documentary, “Sacheen, Breaking the Silence.” The documentary revisits her pivotal role during the 1973 Academy Awards when she read a summarized version of Marlon Brando’s political statement, bringing awareness to the prejudicial treatment of Native American actors in the film industry. Although Marlon Brando had won the Best Actor Award for his role in the mega hit movie, “The Godfather,” he used the platform to bring public awareness by boycotting the award ceremony and declining the award. The boycott was believed to be a consequence of the industry’s demeaning portrayals of Native Americans as savages, drunks, and a dim- witted people – an image which the Native American community continues to attempt to correct.
Chief Phillip Whitman Jr of the Northern Cheyenne Nation was honored with the RNCI Native Consultant Award, presented by Christian Bale, Rory Cochran and Director Scott Cooper, for his work on the film Hostiles. It was a magical evening in Beverly Hills.
Authenticity in the film industry and accurate representation of Indigenous people is crucial. We are a “living culture” this is why Native consultants knowledge should come from actually living and experiencing “a way of Life” and not acquired from history books. This is what Phillip brought to the movie Hostiles, the director and actors connected with him on a deep level.
A Highlight of the Festival was its Indigenous Storytelling through Animation Series international award- winning Puerto Rican director Alba Enid Garcia, which won for Best Animated Short “Dak Toka Taino” (I am Taino). The multiply-awarded animated film tells a story about how a grand-mother attempts to tell her young her grand-daughter about their native Taino indigenous heritage and culture in the aftermath of the devastation to Puerto Rico caused by Hurricane Maria in 2017. The film also addresses the complexities related to trying to preserve indigenous culture and language in an ever-changing world. The film was a collaboration with the Henson IBEX Puppetry. The company is a Heather Henson company, who is the daughter of famed Jim Henson of the beloved Sesame Street and Muppets characters.
Among others who attended the Festival and Awards were Native Celebrities Shari Belafonte, Sacheen Littlefeather, Tantoo Cardinal, Joanne Shenandoah, Yvonne Russo, A Martinez, where founder of RNCI Red Nation International Film Festival and AMPAS member Joanelle Romero’s son Montano Rain United Nations Award YEA recipient was honored with ‘The Courage Award’
Days after revealing who won at 24th RNCI Red Nation Awards on Friday, November 15 in Beverly Hills, the Red Nation Celebration Institute’s Film Festival continued with its success in garnering attention with announcements of its continued American Indian and Indigenous year-round programs for 2020.
Aubrey Hicks of USC Price Bedrosian Center confirmed from stage that Red Nation Celebration Institute and USC Price School of Public Policy have partnered to create the first American Indian Studies Center at USC, which will be named after Red Nation Celebration Institute.
Native Women in FILM win big this year, ONCE UPON A RIVER won Best Picture, Best Director, Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role (dir. Haroula Rose); TATANKA MEANS won Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role for Once Upon A River; ELLE-MAIJA TAILFEATHERS won Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role for My Body Remembers When The World Broke Open; WOMEN OF THE WHITE BUFFALO won Best Documentary (dir. Deborah Anderson); THE CONDOR & THE EAGLE won Best Documentary (Dir. Sophie Guerra, Clement Guerra); SACHEEN LITTLEFEATHER: BREAKING THE SILENCE won Best Doc Short (dir. Peter Spirer); DAK’TOKA TAINO won Best Animated Short (dir. Alba Enid García); THREE FEATHERS won Best Live Action Short (Dir. Carla Ulrich).
Sacheen Littlefeather received The Marlon Brando Award; Albino Garica received The Edward R Roybal Award; Les Lo Baugh Jr. received The Chief Dan George Award; Merata: How Mum Decolonized The Screen producers Chelsea Winstanley, Cliff Curtis, Te Arepa Kahi, Manutai Schuster received The Native Women in FILM Award.
With environmental films like Mark Ruffalo’s DARK WATERS, who has supported RNCI Red Nation International Film Festival, RNCI Red Nation Awards honored Environmental Indigenous Youth MONTANO RAIN ROBINSON with ‘THE COURAGE AWARD’ a United Nations First YEA Award recipient ‘Montano Rain Robinson’ for his ground-breaking work in establishing his Help the Earth nonprofit organization when he was 8 years old, founded the first Environmental Youth Summit in the City of Los Angeles when he was in the 8th grade bringing together 275 youth, founded the first Environmental Film Festival in the City of LA, worked with Dr. Jane Goodall, worked with Red Nation Celebration Institute on all its Red is Green Carpet events, edited all sizzle reels for its Red Nation International Film Festival and served on Red Nation Celebration Institute Board of Directors, all while in school from 3rd to 11th grade. A Graduate of Berklee College of Music, now 25 years old and currently working in the music industry, son of Joanelle Romero.
Red Nation International Film Festival is responsible for bringing in the native youth from South and North Dakota in 2015 to Los Angeles for the First Indigenous Women’s Environmental March, these youth were so inspired they went back home and started the biggest movement of our time Standing Rock.
As the RNCI Red Nation Awards wound down, the celebration continued with Sacred moments of dance with Joe Tohonnie Jr and The White Mountain Apache Crown Dancers.
Inside the event, sponsored by Red Nation Television Network, FilmLA, Comcast NBCUniversal, DuVernay-Array, American Film Institute, Honest Engine Films, Janus Films, Handmade Films, Television City Studios, Sycuan Band of Kumeyaay Nation, Mescalero Apache-Inn of the Mountain Gods, San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, The Tzo-Nah Fund, Native Education World Intelligence, USC Price School of Public Policy, USC Price Bedrosian Center, NoVo Foundation, Los Angeles Cultural Affairs, Los Angeles County Supervisor Solis, Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, Picuris Pueblo-Hotel Santa Fe The Hacienda & Spa, chatting On The Red is Green Carpet with Lynette Twobulls, wife of Chief Phillip Whitman Jr “So many strong, talented, brilliant, creative, resilient Indigenous film makers, storytellers, designers, actors, activists, performers, change makers, coming together to share their beautiful powerful stories. And to see so many Indigenous women doing great things”, Albino Garcia “No Words Can Express The Honor, The Grace, and The Spirit of this night”
The RNCI Red Nation Awards on Red Nation Television Network Premiered Thanksgiving
Day Thursday, November 28, 2019. www.RedNationTV.com