Contact:
Brad Brown, Director
director@pocahontasreframed.com
804-517-0297
February 26, 2019
Pocahontas Reframed Film Festival partners with Tribal College Journal
About Pocahontas Reframed
The Pocahontas Reframed “Storytellers” Film Festival honors the contributions of Native Americans and aims to raise awareness about Native American language, cultures, and societies through films that share Native American perspectives. The festival, which is the only one of its kind on the East Coast, brings together producers, directors, authors, cineasters, and actors who share a passion for film, and features experiential learning opportunities for the entire public. The festival is a Legacy Project of the 2019 Commemoration, American Evolution, which highlights events that occurred in Virginia in 1619 that continue to influence America today.
I am looking forward to partnering with the Tribal College Journal,” says Brad Brown, the festival’s organizer. “Storytelling and filmmaking have suffered from a lack of representation of important groups that influenced American democracy, notably Native Americans. Native culture is rich, steeped in history, and multifaceted, yet mainstream films do not often capture this nuance. With this partnership we hope to honor the contributions of Native student filmmakers and reinvigorate the conversations about telling stories of Indigenous life.
About Tribal College Journal (TCJ)
Tribal College Journal is a national, nonprofit media organization operated by the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC). TCJ has covered the news, newsmakers, and issues of the tribal college movement for 30 years, earning multiple awards from organizations such as the Native American Journalists Association, Association Media and Publishing, and the Western Publishing Association. Tribal College Journal (TCJ) is pleased to be partnering with the Pocahontas Reframed “Storytellers” Film Festival, a nationally acclaimed film event that brings Native filmmakers from across North America together for four days of panels and screenings of Indigenous films. The winner of the 2019 TCJ Student best film award will receive a $1,000 prize, as well as an all-expenses paid trip to the third annual Pocahontas Reframed “Storytellers” Film Festival, which will be held in Richmond, Virginia, November 21-24, 2019, at the historic Byrd Theatre.
Tribal College Journal publisher Rachael Marchbanks says, “This is an amazing opportunity for an aspiring student filmmaker to not only receive recognition but also to have the chance to network and form working relationships with professionals in the industry. TCJ seeks to foster and support the art of film production among tribal college students through this contest and by partnering with Pocahontas Reframed.”
About Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs)
Currently, there are 37 AIHEC-affiliated TCUs in the United States operating 75 campuses and serving more than 120,000 students and community members annually. TCUs were created in response to the higher education needs of American Indians and generally serve geographically isolated populations that have no other means of accessing education beyond the high school level. TCUs have become increasingly important educational opportunities for American Indian students and are unique institutions that combine personal attention with cultural relevance to encourage American Indians–especially those living on reservations—to overcome the barriers they face to higher education.
TCJ Student has garnered national attention through its annual film competition, which has been held for the past four years and has featured the growing creative film output at tribal colleges and universities. The partnership with Pocahontas Reframed offers tribal college student filmmakers an unprecedented opportunity to showcase their work at an international film festival that has brought together filmmakers and stars like Michael Horse, Shelley Niro, Darlene Naponse, George Aguilar, and PuraFe.
To be eligible for the TCJ Student film contest and Pocahontas Reframed, students must be currently enrolled at an AIHEC-affiliated tribal college. Students can enroll in the contest at TCJStudent.org or by checking the entry box at the AIHEC student film contest. Films must be under 30 minutes in length and the deadline for entering is March 22, 2019. For more information on the contest, and to access the official TCJ Student entry form, visit: tcjstudent.org/contest