Longhouse Media
Encyclopedia
Longhouse Media is a Washington State non-profit indigenous
media arts
organization, based in Seattle. It was established in January 2005 by Executive Director, Tracy Rector and former Artistic Director, Annie Silverstein, with the support of the Swinomish
Indian Tribal Community. Longhouse Media supports the use of today’s technologies by indigenous people and communities as a tool for self expression, cultural preservation, and social change. Longhouse Media counts 4 full time and 3 part time staff, 30 active volunteers, and 8 Board
members. Among the founding Board members is award winning author, playwright and poet Sherman Alexie
, from the Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Tribe
s.
. Its youth media program ‘Native Lens’ brings digital media training to Native
youth in rural and urban settings and teaches filmmaking to Native youth as a form of inquiry, community development, and cultural pride and preservation. Native Lens was the recipient of the 2007 Seattle Mayor’s Award. In 2009, the monthly television show Native Lens TV was launched. Since 2005 Longhouse Media has worked with a documented 1500 youth and 31 separate tribes.
Productions by Longhouse Media include the feature length documentary March Point which aired nationally on the award-winning PBS
series Independent Lens
and the short film UNRESERVED: The Work of Louie Gong.
Each year Longhouse Media partners with the Seattle International Film Festival
to organize and host the SuperFly Filmmaking Experience. It also collaborates with the Northwest Film Forum
and National Geographic
All Roads Film Project to present a monthly film series showcasing emerging talents in indigenous communities.
Longhouse Media also supports and participates in the annual Urban Native art exhibit “First Expressions” to challenge common stereotypes and misconceptions through up and coming Pacific Northwest
Native and indigenous artists.
In 2009 Longhouse Media received the National Association for Media Literacy Education Award.
As a young non profit organization, Longhouse Media tries to balance the internal and external challenges it faces. Areas of improvement as identified by a Graduate Consultant Team from Seattle University would be the Board’s fundraising strategy, its performance monitoring, and the management of critical events.
, Canada
. The service offered to
"round up and remove First Nations
youth like wild animals, and habitat."
Among many to respond, author and poet Sherman Alexie also spoke out, saying, "As much as the world has changed for indigenous people in good ways, there are still many violent and hateful folks out there who seek to harm us, and we must condemn them in print and in action, and we must do this together."
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
media arts
New media art
New media art is a genre that encompasses artworks created with new media technologies, including digital art, computer graphics, computer animation, virtual art, Internet art, interactive art, computer robotics, and art as biotechnology...
organization, based in Seattle. It was established in January 2005 by Executive Director, Tracy Rector and former Artistic Director, Annie Silverstein, with the support of the Swinomish
Swinomish (tribe)
The Swinomish are an historically Lushootseed-speaking Native American tribe in western Washington state in the United States. The tribe lives in the southeastern part of Fidalgo Island near the San Juan Islands in Skagit County, Washington. Skagit County is located about north of Seattle...
Indian Tribal Community. Longhouse Media supports the use of today’s technologies by indigenous people and communities as a tool for self expression, cultural preservation, and social change. Longhouse Media counts 4 full time and 3 part time staff, 30 active volunteers, and 8 Board
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
members. Among the founding Board members is award winning author, playwright and poet Sherman Alexie
Sherman Alexie
Sherman Joseph Alexie, Jr. is a writer, poet, filmmaker, and occasional comedian. Much of his writing draws on his experiences as a Native American. Two of Alexie's best known works are The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven , a book of short stories and Smoke Signals, a film...
, from the Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Tribe
Coeur d'Alene Tribe
The Coeur d'Alene are a Native American people who lived in villages along the Coeur d'Alene, St. Joe, Clark Fork and Spokane Rivers; as well as sites on the shores of Lake Coeur d'Alene, Lake Pend Oreille and Hayden Lake, in what is now northern Idaho, eastern Washington and western Montana.In...
s.
Media arts work
Central to Longhouse Media is its commitment to providing youth the skills necessary to tell their own stories through digital mediaDigital media
Digital media is a form of electronic media where data is stored in digital form. It can refer to the technical aspect of storage and transmission Digital media is a form of electronic media where data is stored in digital (as opposed to analog) form. It can refer to the technical aspect of...
. Its youth media program ‘Native Lens’ brings digital media training to Native
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
youth in rural and urban settings and teaches filmmaking to Native youth as a form of inquiry, community development, and cultural pride and preservation. Native Lens was the recipient of the 2007 Seattle Mayor’s Award. In 2009, the monthly television show Native Lens TV was launched. Since 2005 Longhouse Media has worked with a documented 1500 youth and 31 separate tribes.
Productions by Longhouse Media include the feature length documentary March Point which aired nationally on the award-winning PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
series Independent Lens
Independent Lens
Airing weekly on PBS through ITVS, the Emmy Award-winning series Independent Lens introduces new drama and documentary films made by independent filmmakers. Past seasons of Independent Lens have been presented by hosts Angela Bassett, Don Cheadle, Susan Sarandon, Edie Falco, Terrence Howard, Maggie...
and the short film UNRESERVED: The Work of Louie Gong.
Each year Longhouse Media partners with the Seattle International Film Festival
Seattle International Film Festival
The Seattle International Film Festival , held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees...
to organize and host the SuperFly Filmmaking Experience. It also collaborates with the Northwest Film Forum
Northwest Film Forum
Northwest Film Forum is a non-profit film arts organization established in Seattle in 1995. NWFF operates a two-screen movie theater year-round in Seattle, but also offers workshops, equipment rentals, and filmmaking grants and sponsorships in support of local cinema...
and National Geographic
National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society , headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical...
All Roads Film Project to present a monthly film series showcasing emerging talents in indigenous communities.
Longhouse Media also supports and participates in the annual Urban Native art exhibit “First Expressions” to challenge common stereotypes and misconceptions through up and coming Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
Native and indigenous artists.
In 2009 Longhouse Media received the National Association for Media Literacy Education Award.
As a young non profit organization, Longhouse Media tries to balance the internal and external challenges it faces. Areas of improvement as identified by a Graduate Consultant Team from Seattle University would be the Board’s fundraising strategy, its performance monitoring, and the management of critical events.
Social justice work
In March 2010, a Longhouse Media March Point documentary photo was used in an online extraction ad for Native youth in OntarioOntario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The service offered to
"round up and remove First Nations
First Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
youth like wild animals, and habitat."
Among many to respond, author and poet Sherman Alexie also spoke out, saying, "As much as the world has changed for indigenous people in good ways, there are still many violent and hateful folks out there who seek to harm us, and we must condemn them in print and in action, and we must do this together."