Establishing shot:
Named locations:
Major themes covered: tribal members speak
Native activities shown:
Individuals? Named?
Native language spoken:
Audible? silent
Noteworthy elements:
Other notes: 1976 Festival Of American Folklife 16
Establishing shot: Plains Indian Chief using sign language (Tribal affiliation not specified)
Named locations:“Sun Dance Reservation” however, there is no such place
Major themes covered: This film offers a glimpse of the work involved during the preparation for the traditional Sun Dance Ceremony (Okan) of the Blackfeet Tribe
Establishing shot:
Named locations:
Major themes covered: father takes his young son to pow wow ceremony in Gallup, New Mexico
Native activities shown:
Individuals? Named?
Native language spoken:
Audible?
Noteworthy elements:
Other notes:
Score: Elisabeth Waldo and her folklorico orchestra
Crew: Photography: Steve Penny; Animation: Alan Rice; Technical Supervision: Rick Lopez, Dick Mitchell, Jim Leaman; Production Assistants: Mike King, Chriss Dentzel, Conrad Corbett; Film Editor/Sound Editor: Steve Penny, Gary Tegler.
Cast: Yuki Manak, Patti Chavez, John Aldocano, Glenn Penny, Therese Barret (as Chumash people); Grant Campbell (as himself)
NOTE: This film contains demeaning and condescending language that is a product of the historical period of its creation. These attitudes are not endorsed by AIFG.
The film Real Americans uses multiple references to Native Americans in the past tense via the narration. Jean O’Brien, in Firsting and Lasting: Writing Indians Out of Existence in New England (2010), discusses similar techniques used by non-Native authors of local historical texts of the 1800’s to relegate the “Indian” to the past.
Establishing shot: Six men standing together, in chief feathers, talking amongst each other.
Named locations: Tesuque Pueblo (in opening credit); Taos Pueblo (in opening credit); Gallup, New Mexico (in advertisement).
Major themes covered: Competition-style Native American Pow-Wow dances are performed. Images of dancers in competition regalia posing for the camera.
Edited by: Dan Lovins
Consultants: Dr Ralph Patrick, Research Associate, Washington University; John Adair, Anthropology, Cornell University; Larry Moore, Community Services, Navajo Tribe; and Evon Z. Vogt, Anthropology, Harvard University.
Establishing shot: Camera fades into a black and white Steenback viewer with a man working on a film reel. The camera tracks this man (Hartzell) as he approaches Dr. Patrick.
Field Associate: Arnold Whitaker
Establishing shot: A mid-close up of a man, dressed in a suit and tie, reading a large paper map. A world map can be seen in the background and in the foreground is a large desk, which the man is reading at. The narrator then puts the map down and begins narrating. The narration then becomes voice over as the scene cuts to a car driving on a barren dirt road of Utah.
Camera: Robert Cline
Sound: Clarence Townsend
Consultant: Ruth Underhill, Ph.D., a noted Southwestern anthropologist
Editor: H. E. Mandal
Establishing shot: A night scene in which Navajo people dance around a campfire in full frame. In a quick cut, the camera is then positioned closer to the campfire as the men circle.
Named locations: No named location
Major themes covered: The impact of tuberculosis on Native Americans, particularly the Navajo
NOTE: This film contains demeaning and offensive material and may not be suitable for all viewers. It reflects stereotypes of Native peoples prevalent in the 1930s. Its attitudes are not those of the American Indian Film Gallery.