Spirits for Sale

[Freija]

Some of you already know that I am making a film....and some of you are actually IN the film  ...but I just thought I´d make it official in here, since we´re close to having completed it.

We´re making a documentary called Spirits for Sale - because that´s what is happening in Europe and many other places. The message in the film is that Spirits are not for sale. We cover the exploitation of ceremonies and sacred places and we´re also trying to educate non-Natives about how Ndn:s of today live and what issues they/you face. There will be interviews with exploiters and with Ndn:s commenting on the abuse. Since we couldn´t find any fundings, we decided to make the film ourselves. It costs a fortune (still makes me puke thinking of it) but it is done for a good cause. It´ll be okey...somehow...

We filmed in SD last summer and in TX and NM some months ago. Since it is mostly Lakota ceremonies that are being exploited, we focused on letting Lakota Elders and medicine people speak out about the abuse. We are now editing the film and it should open in September, then we´ll try to spread it all over the world. (It will be coming to a cinema near you!!  )

I would like to take this opportunity to officially thank all those wonderful - absolutely wonderful - Native people we have met that have helped us along! Elders/elders, spiritual leaders, medicinepeople, activists, story-tellers, warriors, scholars...WOW! THANK YOU!

I hope it will be a huge success! Once I´ve broken even (If I do  ) I will take the profit and go back to all those lovely people that helped us! That is my next dream...to be able to give back....

I also hope this film will start a discussion that spreads like wildfire all over the place, I hope that many followers of frauds will stop and listen. And I hope everyone that is on our side - and there are many of them! - will come forward, having the courage once and for all to say: "This has gone too far, this has to stop!"

Finally - if I hadn´t found NAFPS, this film would never have been made! Thanks to all the great people I have met here who have always supported me, this once so "crazy" dream came true! So a special credit goes to NAFPS!

If you know of filmfestivals or other events over there where we could show our film...give me a shout! Thanks!

[Diana]

Hi Freija, good for you! I'm glad someone is  finally stepping up to the plate and knocking it out of the ballpark. Here is a link to NativeVue http://www.nativevue.org/blog/. They specialize in NativeVue Film & Media and always advertise all the Native film festivals. The person who you need to talk to is Carol. Good luck and keep us all apprised when your movie comes out, I for one will would love to go to the premiere.   

[Freija]

Thanks, Diana!
I am Swedish, so I am not sure that the Native filmfestivals would admit our film. But no harm in asking, guess there are different rules for different festivals.

We are aiming at having the world premiere at the Nordic Filmfestival in Finland in September. They get thousands of visitors from Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland. It should be good considering all the abuse over here. Otherwise we´ll just make it a big premiere in Sweden, we´re having one of the Lakota guys in the film coming over to answer questions and explain his view on things. 

Once the film is out, I´ll make a list in here of all the places where it is playing!

[A.R.]

No doubt you'll be having good time in your film festival in Finland. 
 
Though I am not a Finn, still, Swedish in Finland, that I know ... have always been treated with politeness and with courteousity, after all a percentage of Finns are Swedes.

But having lived one year in Sweden, (this is many years ago now), I did get a very good "education" about what it is like to live there as a foreigner.    And the Finnish "quest workers" there had fallen into a black hole the depression, alcoholism, domestic violence  .... You know the usual ....
 
Took a ship across from Stockholm to Helsinki on New Years Eve.   At midnight the ship met another ship going the other way.    The ships stopped and were pointing their lights on water, and I thought it was all because of the New Year's celebrations.   A crew member then came to tell me, that somebody had jumped overboard.   He said that nearly every week there was a Finnish suicide, but by that time I only understood it too well, but we didn't talk about those things publicly then ....


Living in Copenhagen, there was this one place where the people from Greenland used to go.    They also had fallen into a black hole of depression, alcoholism .... suicides, violence  .... all that.
 
But what was it now .... I think it was the cause for saving the Guatemalan Mountain people, that was in vogue for the Danes at that time.

You know how these causes that are highly fashionable for a period of time keep on changing, can't really keep track of them.   But I guess we still mustn't talk about the Natives of Greenland.

A.R.

[Barnaby_McEwan]

A. R.: please stop gatecrashing threads.

[Later] I've just read this again. A.R., you're skating on very thin ice. Stop making snide accusations. If you think someone here is a hypocrite that is a very serious charge and requires evidence to back it up. I will not tolerate any further sniping so think very carefully before posting in future.

[educatedindian]

These came in from H-Net, academia listservs. The second might be Native only, not sure.

National Geographic's All Roads Film Project Call for Entries

All Roads is seeking submissions for its 2007 All Roads Film
Festival. Categories are narrative features, narrative shorts,
feature documentaries, short documentaries, animation, and music
videos. To submit a film or video visit our website and download an
application.
[http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=j9aoi5bab.0.xpumk5bab.8fvnpcbab.4822&ts=S0234&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nationalgeographic.com%2Fallroads%2Fschedules.html]

NAPT 2007 Open Call for Proposals

The postmark deadline for NAPT's 2007 Open Call is July 11, 2007.
We welcome proposals for projects in all stages. Sixty-minute
formats are strongly preferred, but films of any length will be
considered. Review our guidelines and complete the application form
online.
[http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=j9aoi5bab.0.wpumk5bab.8fvnpcbab.4822&ts=S0234&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nativetelecom.org%2Fprogramfund.pdf]

Questions? Contact Penny Costello at 402-472-0496, or by email
[mailto:pcostello1@unl.edu].


Festival Submission Deadline Is May 15, 2007.

[Freija]

A. R.: please stop gatecrashing threads.

[Later] I've just read this again. A.R., you're skating on very thin ice. Stop making snide accusations. If you think someone here is a hypocrite that is a very serious charge and requires evidence to back it up. I will not tolerate any further sniping so think very carefully before posting in future.

Thanks, Barnaby! I didn´t ever bother to comment on AR:s post. I hope most people who are against the exploitation will see this film as GOOD NEWS and we do need some good news in here on and off! If someone has the need to kill these good news....then there is a hidden agenda and I´d rather stay out of those discussions. By the way, after a couple of years we will have the film on DVD for anyone to buy - hopefully it could then be used as an educational tool both here and in US.

And THANKS, Al! National Geographic sounds good! I do hope for Sedona Filmfestival! We´ve just GOTTO show it there! 

[bigAl]

This sounds like a very big project.  Will your main focus be on the requests and words of Native people?  Or will this also be an attempt to get the "word out" on specific people that have been identified as frauds.  Perhaps the two mix some?

Thank you.

[Freija]

Hi BigAl

Yeah, it started off like a small project, the first plan was to interview people in Sweden (mostly because we didn´t have money to do anything else). But the whole project got wings and took us further than we could ever have dreamt of, mainly because of all the wonderful Native people who helped us make this film possible.

The focus in the film is to let Native people say what they want to say. We are in no way naming specific frauds, although we have interviewed a non-Native guy selling ceremonies in Europe and his followers.  We have cross-edited their comments with comments from elders, traditionalists and other Indians. It gets pretty...funny....      And, believe me, the Indians get the last word!! 

And there is a story in the film, too, which I quite like. I have been given an eagle feather by a Native man coming to Sweden, but I want to give it back to the people that should take care of it. So we pretend I know nothing about Natives, therefore I go over to US looking for the right person to give it to. The feather takes me to different places and different tribes, where Natives talk about the issues they face and the problems with exploitation and stereotypes. (And I´m only in the film for 2 minutes...refused to have it any other way, this is a film about Ndn issues) So while the feather travels, the viewers learn about Native cultures. Finally I am told to go to South Dakota and see the Lakotas which I do. We cover the exploitation of sacred places in SD, like Bear Butte, where activist get to say what they want to say. (And wow...DO they...haha) The film ends when the feather lands in the hands of Lakota spiritual leader Arvol Looking Horse. By then the viewers have learned a lot about exploitation of ceremonies, sacred places and items - the feather is "home" and it will be a symbol for "Give back to Native Americans what belongs to them!"

It is a very powerful and emotional film with absolutely beautiful footage!! Actually, I cried the first time I saw it and that was just a rough cut!

[Enoe]

Will it have English subtitles? I don't know if it will be relevant, but you could try submitting; http://www.cambridgefilmfestival.org.uk/

[Freija]

Hi Enoe and nice to meet you     

The film is in English, that was a decision we made since it makes it more attractive worldwide. Even the Europeans in the film speak English.

Thanks a lot for the link!! We won´t have time to enter it this year, I noticed the deadline was last of April. But this film is going to live forever  so maybe next year!

Thanks again!

[steve_w]

freija

so you swedish huh? good for you. tell me how come you europeans are into indian culture and stuff? i saw this pic once where this guy in germany was living in a tipi and conducting indian ceremonies. lot's of indian frauds over there eh? well you sound like a good person in my book. good luck with you film. what's it called? where can i see it? thank you.

[Freija]

Hi Steve, we will start the distribution of the film this fall, so don´t know yet where it will be screened. (Apart from in a cinema here in Sweden on the 10th October and 13th October - the ticketsale is great!!  )

As for why Europeans are in to NA ceremonies - I think it has been discussed so many times in here.  They find it "exotic", they have bought in to all the lies and fantasies, many are spiritual bankrupt....and lots of other reasons. 

[steve_w]

freija

i am happy for your film about Indian spirituality. just one quick question. and it is just an opinion.
why did you say that you hope your film spirits for sale would make you break even? sounds like you are exploiting indians just like the rest. how does a european person even justify such a film when it was the eurpean rape and inavasion of north america that decimated millions of indian people? was you film motivated by european guilt of what you did to my people or like you said, a project to fill your own pockets? i have never seen an indian making a film about european religion. just curious is all. thank you.

[Freija]

Steve - or whatever your name is - I realized that I was to expect accusations when I replied to your last question.

I am not getting myself into any arguments about the film, which I´ve also told you before. You are free to think whatever you like to think. Which you will no doubt do. People who have been involved in the film know what I am doing and discrediting the film in here just gives it more and more promotion.

My suggestion is that you make a film of your own instead....