sandpainting

El Navajo

Establishing shot: Navajo riders on horseback silhouetted by sunrise
Named locations:Gallup, New Mexico; Window Rock, Arizona; St. Michael Mission; Ganado Mission; Hubble’s Trading Post, Ganado, AZ.

Major themes covered: An intimate look at Navajo daily life and culture, presented to appeal to an Anglo audience in order to promote tourism.

The Golden West

NOTE: This film contains demeaning language and may not be suitable for all viewers.  It reflects stereotypes of Native peoples prevalent in the 1940s. Its attitudes are not those of the American Indian Film Gallery.

Painting with Sand (A Navajo Ceremony)

Establishing shot: Extreme long shot of the landscape the Navajos live in. In the background a group of mountains can be seen. In the middle ground a man can be seen on horseback on top of a sandy mount. A rider can be seen on screen right, and on screen left a closer mountain can be seen. Clouds can be seen in the sky.
Named locations: Monument Valley; Utah; Arizona; Navajo Indian Reservation; Navajo Mountain; San Francisco Mountain; La Plata Mountain;
Major themes covered: The cultural significance of sandpaintings

Navajo Sandpainters

Establishing shot: Extreme long shot of the Navajo reservation. On screen right a scraggly desert tree can be seen, and in the background a large mountain (Navajo Mountain) can be seen in the center of the frame.
Named locations: Santa Fe, New Mexico; Navajo Mountain.
Major themes covered: The cultural significance of sandpaintings