User:Native Lens/Longhouse media

Longhouse Media

Mission The mission of [Longhouse Media] is to catalyze indigenous people and communities to use media as a tool for self-expression, cultural preservation, and social change.

History [Longhouse Media], a Washington State non-profit organization, was launched in January 2005 by Executive Director, Tracy Rector and Artistic Director, Annie Silverstein with the support of the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community. Their vision was to start an indigenous media arts organization that would nurture the expression and development of Native artists, drawing from traditional and modern forms of storytelling, cultural identity, teaching and inquiry, based in the technologies of today.

Central to Longhouse Media is the belief that young people are the next generation of storytellers and educators and they focus much of their efforts on their nationally acclaimed youth media program “Native Lens". Native Lens teaches filmmaking to Native youth as a form of self-expression, inquiry, community development, and cultural pride and preservation. In the last four years the Native Lens program has grown and flourished due to an outpouring of support, and interest from Native youth, community members and tribal leaders. Youth produced work created through Native Lens has not only yielded strong and positive new media, but also increased participants’ self esteem, worked as a catalyst for community interaction and dialog, and supported youth in the development of life skills and academic success in school. In only four dynamic years they have worked with more than 950 Native youth in the Pacific Northwest through partnerships with regional tribes, funding agencies and established non-profits.

Meanwhile, Longhouse Media has continued to develop an array of successful media arts programming for indigenous communities; partnering with the Seattle International Film Festival to organize and host the annual SuperFly Filmmaking Experience, working in collaboration with Native youth and Native American Public Telecommunications to produce the acclaimed feature length documentary [March Point] for PBS’ Independent Lens, supporting the work of Urban Indian artists through the annual art show “Expressions,” launching the on-reservation Swinomish youth produced monthly television show Native Lens TV, and offering an ongoing series of educational workshops and trainings in partnership with tribes, schools, museums, cultural centers and health clinics. We are both proud and humbled by our successes, fueled by the knowledge that we are bridging a gap between Native communities and digital media, and providing life skills, career development in the media field, community involvement through media projects, and artistic expression through digital filmmaking. We wish to thank all of our supporters, tribal partners, students, mentors, community members, funders, and volunteers, for your inspiration, generosity, and dedication.