June 22, 2012
The Museum of Northern Arizona’s 2012 Heritage Program Film Series, funded by the Arizona Humanities Council, examines regional themes through Native films, documentaries, and a fictional “mockumentary.” These films are meant to spark viewers’ engagement with a broader world, by exploring the cultures of the Southwestern United States and presenting multiple points of view in a creative format.
Saturday, July 7, 6–8 p.m.
Introductions of films will be by emerging film director Travis Holt Hamilton and Northern Arizona film scholar Janna Jones from Northern Arizona University.
How to Make Fry Bread
American Indian Film Gallery, 1973 (5 minutes)
Northern Arizona University Film Scholar Janna Jones
This 1973 home film is from the American Indian Film Gallery, a web-based archive of films long buried in obscure vaults, unused and forgotten. The AIFG is a dynamic compilation of motion pictures about the original peoples of North and South America.
Jones will introduce this short film and share the importance of AIFG’s historic films.
More than Fry Bread by Filmmaker Travis Holt Hamilton
Mockumentary Film, 2010 (93 minutes)
This is a recently released film with all-Native cast. Twenty-two frybread makers, representing all twenty-two federally recognized tribes in Arizona convene in Flagstaff to compete for the made-up first annual Arizona State Frybread Championship. The film follows four of the contestants (played by Tatanka Means, Teresa Choyguha, Dey & Nite, and Camille Nighthorse) as they compete for the title in the championship, and was filmed in Flagstaff, Tucson, and Peach Springs, Arizona. Professional Native actors, as well as locals participate in the film, many of them participants of MNA’s Heritage Program Festivals.
“Numerous people have made frybread, everying claiming their bread is best,” Hamilton explained. “So, we thought, let’s kind of play that up and have a competition that these tribes are competing for the championship title.” Hamilton says his inspiration for making a “mockumentary” came after spending time living on the Navajo Reservation, wanting to “help tell the stories that are out there. I wanted to make people see Native differently than maybe they do when watching Dances with Wolves, or something that is a little more stereotypical of Native America.”
To learn more about More than Fry Bread, visit frybreadmovie.com, holthamiltonfilms,com, or “like” the film on Facebook.
Attendance to the July 7 films is $6 for ages 4 and over, and free for 3 years and under, at the door or in advance at the Museum’s Front Desk.
The Museum of Northern Arizona has a long and illustrious history and evokes the very spirit of the Colorado Plateau. It serves as the gateway to understanding this region, with nine exhibit galleries revealing Native cultures, artistic traditions, and natural sciences. MNA’s four Heritage Program festivals highlight the region’s cultures and encourage communication and the exchange of ideas between visitors, educators, and artists. The Museum is located three miles north of historic downtown Flagstaff on Highway 180, scenic route to the Grand Canyon. More information about MNA is at musnaz.org or 928.774.5213.