We are beyond thrilled to be joined this week by Dr. Angelica Lawson (Northern Arapaho), an Assistant Professor of Film Studies and Ethnic Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder. In this episode, Dr. Lawson talks to us about Native American representation in films throughout Hollywood’s timeline. From her, we gain an understanding on how Indigenous identities are portrayed in silent pictures and early Westerns. We also learn the definition of revisionist Westerns and their groundbreaking impact in sharing more developed Native American characters. And finally, we revisit movies from the 1990s through today, with tips on where to access filmography created by Native American artists. This was such a special episode for us and we hope you’ll share with a friend!
Below are the films, television programs, and literary pieces referenced in the episode.
Films and Television Programs Mentioned:
The Vanishing American (1925)
Hopi Snake Dance (1893)
Sioux Ghost Dance (1894)
Stagecoach (1939)
The Searchers (1956)
Broken Arrow (1950)
Cheyenne Autumn (1964)
Little Big Man (1970)
The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976)
The Native Americans Series (1974) – NBC
Lonesome Dove Series (1989) – CBS; Unforgiven (1992); Tombstone (1993); Legends of the Fall (1995); Wyatt Earp (1994); The Quick and the Dead (1995); Back to the Future Part III (1990)
Dances with Wolves (1990)
Wind Talkers (2002)
Flags of Our Fathers (2006)
Yellowstone (2018-Present) – Paramount Network, Peacock
Pocahontas (1995)
Smoke Signals (1998)
Naturally Native (1998)
Skins (2002)
The Doe Boy (2001)
Four Sheets to the Wind (2007)
Barking Water (2009)
Rustic Oracle (2019)
Blood Quantum (2019)
Reservation Dogs (2021 – Present) – FX on Hulu
Books and Articles Mentioned:
The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757 (1826) by James Fenimore Cooper
Dime Novels / Dime Westerns
The Vanishing American (1925) by Zane Grey
Picturing Indians: Native Americans in Film, 1941–1960 (2020) by Liza Black
Little Big Man (1964) by Thomas Berger
Killing the Indian Maiden (2006) by M. Elise Marubbio
“Coyote’s Way: Missy Whiteman’s Indigenous New Media” in
Studies in American Indian Literatures (Spring 2017) by Dr. Angelica Lawson
Native Americans on Film: Conversations, Teaching, and Theory (2013)
Reservation Reelism: Redfacing, Visual Sovereignty, and Representations of Native Americans in Film (2013) by Michelle H. Raheja
Native Recognition: Indigenous Cinema and the Western (2013) by Joanna Hearne
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