Short Abstract:

A live conversation with filmmakers Nanobah Becker and Kristian Marcado, chaired by Grace L. Dillon (author or Walking the Clouds, an anthology of Indigenous Science Fiction), on contemporary indigenous speculative fiction on film.

Long Abstract:

This conversation between Grace L. Dillon and filmmakers Nanobah Becker and Kristian Mercado accompanies the online exhibition Indigenous Film Futures.

Centering indigenous speculative fiction on film, the exhibition celebrates the work of Indigenous filmmakers and theorists who focus on temporality and the future in their practice. The featured artists explore alternate worlds, speculative futures, Indigenous sciences and non-linear temporalities in ways that reflect on themes of colonization, survivance and ecological sustainability. They refute discourses that weld indigeneity to an a-historicised past and assert a thriving Indigenous life in the present and future. This work deploys futurism to question the notion of a single linear temporality that subsumes all others and fashion strategies of hope and possibilities in the present.

Inspired by leading thinkers and artists Grace Dillon, Loretta Todd and Skawennati amongst many others, this online exhibition encourages visitors to take a multimedia journey through online spaces designed and run by Indigenous creators.

The exhibition will include:

Short films

A live online roundtable discussion with Grace Dillon (chair), and filmmakers Nanobah Becker and Kristian Marcado

A resource list of readings and websites that will help the visitor learn more about Indigenous Futurism

Grace L. Dillon is professor in the Indigenous Nations Studies Program at Portland State University, and author of Walking the Clouds, an anthology of Indigenous Science Fiction.