In this project I have centered my research around the history of Indigenous representation in film, with a particular focus on the representations of Indigenous women. I began my line of interest with a discussion based around Neil Diamond’s 2012 film “Reel Injuns”, which gives an archival perspective on Indigenous representations in film and the ways in which the film industry has contributed to ongoing colonial violence. Diamond’s film is functional as an introduction to concepts of Indigenous representations in the film industry, however, it is mainly concerned with the representation of a masculine Indigenous identity. This viewpoint does not challenge colonial stereotypes or serve to deconstruct colonially imposed gendered binaries. There is very little inclusion in the film of an Indigenous feminist perspective or of any perspectives that are grounded in queer theory. This not only erases Indigenous women from the history of film, but also fails to explore the ways in which Indigenous women’s contributions to film and media have worked towards resurgence and decolonial practice. My main interest in the project is to jump off from this point and develop a deeper understanding of the film industry’s representation of Indigenous women and how that relates to ongoing colonial violence. I aim to set up Indigenous women’s work in film as an act of reclaiming autonomy on the screen and subvert colonial gender hierarchies to move towards a place of healing and resurgence.

Because the focus of my project is film, much of my research consists of films that were made by Indigenous women. I plan to use these sources as a means of steering the investigation away from just the representation and explore Indigenous women’s contributions and labour in film. These films explore themes and ways of being that I feel are not touched upon in Diamond’s film. I hope to construct an argument around the idea that Indigenous women’s work in film is creating a visual language of healing. I plan to use the films such as Helen Haig-Brown’s “My Legacy” and Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers’s “Bloodland” and “A Red Girl’s Reasoning” to build an understanding of how the ongoing effects of colonial violence and intergenerational trauma work in the lives of Indigenous and effect the health of bodies and relationships and also present different narratives of resistance. My scholarly sources will help to articulate these thoughts and also provide some background for Indigenous women’s role in the film industry. I also want to look at the Embargo project, particularly its second iteration, which incorporates work from Tailfeathers and other female Indigenous filmmakers, to build a visual narrative of solidarity. Films that are part of this project, such as Alethea Arnaquq-Baril’s “Aviliaq (Entwined)” work towards a narrative of collective collaboration, mutual solidarity and visual sovereignty. In my scholarly research, I am curious to see if the narratives of love and resistance that are present in the films are explored or if these scholarly sources focus their discussion mainly on more surface questions of representation. I am interested in discussing the practice of filmmaking and its relationship to love, resistance and solidarities between Indigenous women.