FROM ALL DIRECTIONS
INDIGENOUS AND REGIONAL CULTURES
AND WORLD MARKETS
News from Bronitsky and Associates
Bringing Together Indigenous Peoples and the World Since 1992
a monthly newsletter from Bronitsky and Associates about events and people from indigenous and regional cultures in the international scene--festivals, funding, conferences, publications and current issues.
Correspondence, subscription/unsubscription, opportunities, talent news, etc. should be directed to the United States office
Circulation: 4236
Our News - what's keeping us busy!
Native American Cultural Programming
Cumbre Tajin Festival, Mexico
ORIGINS: On the Road 2008
ORIGINS: First Nations Theatre From Around The World, London, 2009
For Your Diary
Festivals
Funding
Conferences
Publications
Call for Papers
News
Sites of Interest
Our News - what's keeping us busy!
Native American Cultural Programming
We have been working with a New York-based organization to provide Native American cultural programming for diplomatic visitors to the Western United States.
Cumbre Tajin, Mexico
Tony Duke has returned from Veracruz, Mexico – we have begun work with the Unidos por el Tajin AC, the presenters of the Cumbre Tajin Festival of Identity – www.cumbretajin.com. Cumbre Tajin is a celebration by the Totonac people and is recognized as the largest Indigenous Festival in Mexico.
Bronitsky and Associates is contracted to promote Cumbre Tajin and the Totonac artists internationally. Cumbre Tajin Festival is on March 19th to 13rd 2008, it is planned to host representatives from a premiere Indigenous Australian Festivals at this year’s event with the idea to develop a future cultural exchange between the nations.
ORIGINS: On The Road, 2008
Preparations are now well under way to tour Indigenous theatremakers to the upper Midwest in September 2008. This tour follows the mandate of the London 2007 launch of ORIGINS: First Nations Theatre From Around The World to bring Indigenous theatremakers to Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities.
ORIGINS: First Nations Theatre From Around The World, London, 2009
Indigenous theatre companies from the United States, Canada and Australia have been contacted about participating in the first London season of Origins, and a venue has now been penciled in. All of this is leading to the first London season of the best Indigenous theatre from around the world - stay tuned!
For Your Diary
If you would like to list an event, activity or publication with us, please forward details to before the 28th of each month to ensure its inclusion in the next FROM ALL DIRECTIONS newsletter.
Festivals
CHANGE THE WORLD FESTIVAL, GRANTS, NM - The Change the World Festivals is a community arts festival which will feature local film, dance, music, and art and crafts. They are looking for submissions of films that tackle tough issues of our day such as the environment or substance abuse. They are also looking for short scripts that tackle substance abuse issues. Deadline April 1. They will also have a two day filmmaking competition on April 18-20. http://www.changetheworldfestival.com
For more information, please contact Doug Bocaz-Larson at
GLASTONBURY FESTIVAL OF CONTEMPORARY PERFORMING ARTS - The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts is one of England’s greatest venues for contemporary performing arts. It will take place June 27-29, 2008.
Please visit http://www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk/
PASIFIKA - The Pasifika Festival takes place in March every year at the Western Springs Park, Great North Road, Auckland, New Zealand, March 7th and 8th, 2008. It is one of the largest community events in the South Pacific. It is recognized as an important celebration of the art, culture and lifestyle of Pacific Islands communities of Auckland. The festival is part of the Celebrate Pasifika program of events, which take place throughout March. Please visit www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/whatson/events/pasifika/default.asp
CUMBRE TAJIN - 19th to the 23rd March 2008 showcases the ancient culture of the Totonac people across visual arts and crafts, performing arts, and the healing and culinary traditions indigenous to the Veracruz region. Please visit www.cumbretajin.com
The website is in Spanish and translation can be made using http://babelfish.altavista.com
THE SAMI EASTER FESTIVAL - presented annually in Kautokeino, Norway, the festival is a seven-day journey through Sámi culture and its diversity. The festival features the Sámi Film Festival as well as snowscooter racing and the reindeer racing world cup amid an extensive program of art exhibitions, theatre performances, concerts and religious activities. Please visit www.saami-easterfestival.org/Home.html
MOVING CLOSER FESTIVAL - Warsaw, Poland - the festival events range between academic current of modern art and independent art creators. Both of the above artistic contexts as well as a widely comprehended avant-garde current will d focus the attention of festival audience on inventiveness, ingeniousness and usage of popularly known and unknown media in such a way to achieve new quality in artistic form and content. Another important element of the concept of Moving Closer festival is the popularization of contemporary art and widening of its circle of audience. Sami band Transjoik will be performing this year - http://www.transjoik.com/.
Please visit: http://www.movingcloser.pl
INTERNATIONAL FOLKLORE FESTIVAL "OP ROAKELDAIS" WARFFUM - The Op keldais site, the Folkdance Festival of Warffum, in a small corner of the Netherlands, five kilometers from the Waddenzee, once a year the epic centre of a big cultural shock. Folk dancing groups from every corner of the world present themselves. From Chinese female perfection in color and choreographies and from black pounding
Zandeweer, The Netherlands from June 25-29, 2008. Please visit: http://www.oproakeldais.nl
FESTIVAL OF PACIFIC ARTS - held every four years, the Festival celebrates the richness of the unique cultures and traditions of the Peoples of the Pacific. In 2008, the Festival will take place in American Samoa from July 20th to August 2nd (10 festival days). Please visit www.festival-pacific-arts.org/Festival.html
THE DREAMING FESTIVAL - Australia's International Indigenous Arts and Cultural Festival presented annually at the Woodford Folk Festival site about one and a half hours drive from Brisbane in the beautiful Sunshine Coast hinterland. The Festival dates for 2008 are 6th to 9th June. Please visit www.thedreamingfestival.com
THE WORLD OF MELODY FESTIVAL - Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia - 2008 dates to be confirmed. Since 2004, the World of Melody International Folk Art Festival has been successfully organized in Mongolia by the Mongolian Association of IOV. The main purpose of this festival is to advertise national art throughout the world with its specific nature and tradition. Please visit www.iovmongolia.com
Funding
Frances C. Allen Fellowships
Deadline: March 1, 2008
This fellowship is for women of Native American heritage. While candidates for this award may be working in any graduate or pre professional field, the particular goal of the Allen Fellowship is to encourage Native American women in their studies of the humanities and social sciences. Financial support varies according to need and may include travel expenses. Allen Fellows are expected to spend a significant part of their tenure in residence at the Newberry's D'Arcy McNickle Center for American Indian History. The tenure of the fellowship is from one month to one year; the fellowship provides up to $8,000 in approved expenses. Please note: applicants for the Allen Fellowship must fill out a supplementary form in addition to the cover sheet for special awards and fellowships. Information at http://www.newberry.org/research/felshp/fellowshome.html or contact , (312) 255 3666.
Funds for Performing Arts Programs
The Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) is a nonprofit arts service organization dedicated to the creative advancement and preservation of the arts. WESTAF provides TourWest grants for the presentation of out-of-state touring performers and literary artists in underserved communities within the 13-state WESTAF region (Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming). Projects must include at least one outreach activity, such as lecture-demonstrations, master classes, in-school educational activities involving students with the artist, etc. The application deadline is April 1, 2008. To submit an online application, visit http://westaf.cgweb.org/
Grants Promote Dance Performances on College Campuses
American Masterpieces: Dance-College Component
The American Masterpieces: Dance-College Component, a grant program
funded by the National Endowment for the Arts and administered by
Dance/USA in collaboration with the New England Foundation for the
Arts, is designed to foster appreciation for the best in American
dance history and creativity. The program brings classic American
dances of the past century to college students and audiences in
communities across the nation. Awards of up to $10,000 will provide
support for colleges and universities to bring in artists to
reconstruct or restage works by master American choreographers of
the 20th Century using student dancers. For all projects, public
involvement within and/or beyond the academic
http://www.danceusa.org/programs_publications/American_Masterpieces.htm
Conferences
15th Annual Stabilizing Indigenous
Languages Symposium--Language is Life: Strategies for Language
Revitalization
Hosted by Northern Arizona University
May 2-3, 2008
For the past fifteen years, the Stabilizing Indigenous Languages Symposiums have been disseminating information about effective practices to teach and learn Indigenous languages.
For more information, please visit http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jar/SIL9brochure.html
Publications
“Linguicism in America”
This September/October 2007 NABE News article argues that efforts
to make English the Official Language of the United States and ban
bilingual education are misguided and go against traditional
American beliefs in freedom, including the U.S. Constitution's
guarantee of freedom of speech.
Jon Reyhner, Northern Arizona University
http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jar/LIA.html
Participation Experiments Aim to Build Arts Fan Base
Post-Gazette, 01 February 2008, USA
The problem with some arts events is they treat audiences as if they
don't exist at all.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08032/853985-42.stm?cmpid=entertainment.xml
Call for Papers
Creative Local Communities: Cultural Vitality and Human Rights
UNESCO Observatory, 06 February 2008, Australia
The UNESCO Observatory on Multi-disciplinary Research in the Arts
has released a call for papers for Vol 1, Issue 2 of its e-journal.
http://www.abp.unimelb.edu.au/unesco/ejournal/vol-one-issue-two.html
News
Return of Maori Remains to New Zealand
The University of Oxford has announced that it is returning four
sets of Maori and Moriori human remains to New Zealand in a move
that is the first use of the British institution’s new repatriation
policy. Oxford said it considered numerous issues, including the
ability to return the remains to appropriate groups and that they
were not yielding major scholarly breakthroughs.
http://www.ox.ac.uk/media/news_stories/2008/310118.html
U.S. Flunks Indian “Accounting Test”
A federal judge ruled Wednesday that the Interior Department is
unable to complete an accounting of billions of dollars owed to
Indian landholders across the country.
http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695248809,00.html
Yukon (Canada) Artists Welcome $100,000
Touring Fund
Yukon artists say they're thrilled with a new fund to help them
present their work nationally and internationally. Yukon Culture
Minister Elaine Taylor unveiled a $100,000 touring fund last week
for artists and ensembles who create and produce original work.
Artists and arts groups can apply for up to $10,000 for each
project.
http://www.cbc.ca/arts/artdesign/story/2008/02/12/arts-touring.html
Cree Indian Director Georgina
Lightning's feature film debut OLDER THAN AMERICA to premiere in
competition at the 2008 South by Southwest Film Festival
“Older Than America,” starring Golden Globe nominee Adam Beach,
Bradley Cooper, Tantoo Cardinal, Georgina Lightning and Wes Studi
has been selected as one of eight feature films to compete at the
2008 South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas (March 7-15,
2008).
“Older Than America” synopsis: A woman’s haunting visions reveal a Catholic priest’s sinister plot to silence her mother from speaking the truth about atrocities that occurred at a Native Indian boarding school. A supernatural thriller with cultural content, “Older Than America” speaks to the lasting impact of the cultural genocide that occurred at such schools throughout the United States and Canada.
More information on “Older Than America” can be found at http://olderthanamerica.com
Two California Tribes, Wells Fargo Form
$25 Million Private Equity Fund
"Wells Fargo Community Development Corporation (CDC), the Colusa
Indian Tribe and the Rincon Indian Tribe today said they have formed
First Nations Capital Partners, LLC (FNCP), a specialized $25
million private equity fund. FNCP is the first private equity fund
in the U.S. with tribal governments as its primary investors, owners
and managers. Two California tribes – the Colusa Indian Community of
Colusa, a gaming and farming tribe near Sacramento; and the Rincon
Band of Luiseno Indians, owners of Harrah's Resort and Casino in
Valley Center -- in conjunction with Wells Fargo CDC, have agreed to
become the lead investors in the fund. Each has committed to invest
up to $5 million in the fund over five years. Other Indian tribes
and Nations are expected to commit $1 million to $5 million each,
while four to six individual investors are joining the tribes with a
maximum investment of $250,000 each…"
PR Newswire, February 25, 2008. Copyright 2008 PR Newswire
Association LLC.
All Rights Reserved. Full text available at:
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/080225/aqm083.html?.v=33
Sites of Interest
Navajo Nation
http://www.navajo.org/
Africalia
Launched in 2000, Africalia aims to promote sustainable human
development through supporting the arts and contemporary African
artistic expressions.
www.africalia.be
International Funders for Indigenous
Peoples
www.internationalfunders.org
National Museum of World Culture, Sweden
www.smvk.se
If you would like to contribute an item to FROM ALL DIRECTIONS, the monthly e-newsletter of Bronitsky and Associates, please forward your listing before the 28th of each month to .