The lack of Native representation in film has severely impacted Indigenous youth throughout the U.S. Today, Native youth have some of the lowest high school graduation and college enrollment rates, and Native peoples experience serious psychological distress at 2.5 times the rate of the general population.
Most U.S. schools don’t teach Indigenous history beyond the 19th century. Entertainment and mass media offer a unique opportunity to uplift and educate audiences about Indigenous people, and we at No Man’s Land believe that it shouldn’t be radical that there’s an Indigenous-led entry into the industry for young actors, athletes, and storytellers.
These films are just a shadow of the tremendous intensity, passion, grit, genius and drive that all Indigenous women carry — and we proudly created this program in support of Lina Krueck (she/they), Oglala Lakota + Chicana activist based in Denver, Colorado. She is a transracial adoptee on a journey of reconnection, learning about her cultural roots, ancestral history, and languages—and she has graced our stage in Denver from 2022 to 2024. Lina is passionate about community building and collective liberation and currently works in the human services field in Denver, CO. All proceeds will go to Lina in support of her continued education.
All funds raised from this film program will be put towards flights to Seattle, WA and lodging for Lina to attend the National Indian Child Welfare Association's Protecting Our Children Conference in April of 2024. At this event, Lina will have the opportunity to attend workshops to expand her knowledge around Native child welfare, family preservation and reunification efforts, and cultural programming for Indigenous youth and adults. Any additional money raised will support her travel to Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN this summer to work with the First Nations Repatriation Institute on research and programming for reconnecting Native adoptees, foster children, and their birth families.
OUR INDIGENOUS WOMEN’S SHORT FILMS ARE ONLY ONLINE AND AVAILABLE TO RENT NOW THROUGH FEB 9TH.