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Monday, December 31, 2007

New Book Listing

 


My new book, "Native Americans in Comic Books: A Critical Study," has been officially listed on the McFarland website.


The hardcover, available this coming Spring 2008, will retail for around $49.95 and can be ordered from the McFarland website here.


Tell all your friends - or just anyone interested in either comic books or Native American representation in popular media. Happy reading!

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Article in Games for Windows Magazine

 
I have a article about the Indigenous characterization in video games in the current issue of Games for Windows the Official Magazine. The article focuses Native characters in two video games, Prey and Age of Empires III (AoEIII).

I was lucky enough to get some insider info from the game creators (Human Head and Ensemble Studios) as well as interviews with the Native American voice talent for the games (Michael Greyeyes and see my interview with Michael Horse here).

In short, the article outlines some historical stereotypes in popular media and goes on to discuss these two newer games in relation to Native American representation. Neither of these games are perfect (by ANY stretch of the imagination), but Prey and AoEII do come closer to getting it right (in some areas) than many games that have come along before them. I close by challenging us Indigenous people to get more involved in the creative process of this and all media that depicts us.

I've gotten some very positive feedback from the article as well as a mention at the Flash of Steel blog; so let's hope that this article generates even more discussion. Look for the magazine on newsstands now and be sure to offer any comments or feedback after you read it.

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Digital Natives

 
It's been growing and gaining momentum for some time now...

Native American artists and storytellers are beginning to bend new tools and technology to Our cultural needs.

Throughout history we would adopt new / emerging technological advances - such as glass beads and German silver in place of natural quills and abalone shell adornments - and infuse the medium with our particular cultural values, information, meaning. Similarly, Indigenous people are now using digital media (such as 2d and 3d animation) to tell our stories.

A recent article in Native Peoples Magazine by Kade L. Twist (Cherokee), "brave new worlds - Indigenous Animation Movement Rising," outlines this phenomenon. In the article, Twist mentions several Indigenous digital artists including, Joseph Erb (Cherokee), Nathan Young (Pawnee/Delaware/Kiowa), Roy Boney, Jr. (Cherokee), Wathene Young (Cherokee/Delaware), Matt Mason (Cherokee), Anthony Deiter (Plains Cree/Ojibwe), and Joseph Lazare (Mohawk).

(On an unrelated note: this list seems rather Cherokee-heavy, doesn't it?...where are the Caddo digital artists? Oh wait...I'm right here. Heh.)

It is not only refreshing, but vastly and personally rewarding, to see other Natives working in a similar medium (digital art / media).

The Native Peoples article also mentions the Onida Nation's Four Directions Media, which operates Four Directions Productions (4DP) and Canada’s Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) as bigger, power-house contributors within the digital realm.

This is exactly what we need more of: Indigenous people creating Indigenous content especially in digital media. Just like me, these individuals are working hard to make this a reality and we can use all the support we can get. That's why it's good to see an article that celebrates this work.

Monday, November 26, 2007

New video @ aNm Gallery Posted

 
I have posted a short "360" video of my hardsurface modeling for the Academy of Art. It is modeled on a 1956 Corvette wheel rim. You can see the video as well as other images of my work at alterNative Media Gallery. Comments welcome and appreciated.

Friday, November 09, 2007

Shaman's Tears - now online

 
ComicMix has recently launched Mike Grell's Shaman's Tears in a completely online format. You can read the comic in their entirety, as well as others, at the ComicMix website.
http://www.comicmix.com/comics
Grell is one of the comic book creators I interviewed for my book, "Native Americans in Comic Books: A Critical Study." While I have extensively reviewed the Shaman's Tears series for the book, I left commentary for the online issues, which you can read HERE.
Be sure to check out Grell's own website, where you can get more info about his latest projects and upcoming events.

Monday, October 29, 2007

Dialogue at Montclair Art Museum

 

Rob Schmidt (creator, Peace Party) and I have been invited you to speak as part of the programming in relation to the Montclair Art Museum ("MAM") exhibition Reflecting Culture: The Evolution of the American Super Hero.

The exhibition features a section on Native Americans in comic book both portraying stereotypical depictions, introduction of Native superheroes in main stream comics and the more positive educational models like Blue Corn Comics and others. This event will take place December 6, 2007. See the MAM website for more info.

Here is a PDF announcement of the event.

aNm goes to the Anime SuperCon in Florida

 

aNm on the Road

Look for us at the Anime SuperCon in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, NOV.30 - DEC. 2, 2007!

alterNative Media will have a definite presence at the SuperCon this year: look for our sponsored advertisement in the official Program book as well as flyer inserts for all participants. Here is a blurb from the official Anime SuperCon website:

"FEATURING OVER 25 GUESTS, INCLUDING:
THE STARS OF ADV FILMS - TIFFANY GRANT, CHRIS AYRES & BRITTNEY KARBOWSKI
THE STARS OF MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS - STEVE CARDENAS & KARAN ASHLEY
THE STARS OF AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE - CAREY "FRYLOCK" MEANS, DANA "MASTER SHAKE" SNYDER,
GEORGE "SPACE GHOST" LOWE, C. MARTIN CROKER & JAY WADE EDWARDS
PLUS: APRIL STEWART (STAR OF SOUTH PARK)MUSICAL GUESTS: LISA FURUKAWA, SELECT START, CHICKENBOX, J*SCAPE & MORE!"

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Project Completion: Caddo Nation Website

 

aNm Project Showcase

alterNative Media recently completed work on the Offical Website of the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma. aNm was contracted to design and implement a new website that would best represent the Caddo Nation headquarters.

Specifically, aNm provided the following services:
  • Initial consultation meeting to evaluate specific needs.
  • Creation of custom Flash animated movie on introduction webpage.
  • Design of custom opening, stylistic webpage for introduction.
  • Authoring of custom Cascading Style Sheet (“CSS”), containing all visual formats for entire website.
  • Established hierarchy and format for file organization.
  • Construction of new website menu.
  • Resized multiple photographs / images for optimized web viewing.
  • Continued support and training to Caddo Nation staff of CSS / HTML authoring and image manipulation.
  • Utilized separate website for testing and revision of code and style.
  • Authored and implemented website to live server (50+ individual web pages).
  • Established formatting procedure for staff's continued maintenance.
aNm offers this type of design service, as well as many other artistic and technical specialities. Check out the aNm webpage for a more complete list of our successful partnerships and find out how we can help you achieve your goals.

It's a privaledge, not a right...

 

aNm PSA

I never thought I would have to say this, but...

ATTENTION ALL NATIVE PEOPLE:

Please stop using the "Papyrus" font on your websites, youTube videos, and 'professionally produced' television commercials.

This font is now OVER-used by Us and, in addition (because of its calligraphic ornamental visual style), partially suggests that we Indigenous are more tied to the past, rather than the present.

Let's find a new font to use...heck, I'll even help you create one (just contact me)...but, let's PLEASE lay off the Papyrus. Now, if we could just turn the pan-Indian flute music down a notch as well, all will be right in the world...

Getting off my soapbox now...

Thursday, September 20, 2007

Interview with Michael Horse

 

Former Twin Peaks Actor Talks with aNm

Recently, I've been fortunate enough to garner an interview with Michael Horse, an Indigenous artist and actor (and sometimes musician!) about his work on the Age of Empires III ("AOEII")video game (thanks to fellow Caddo artist, Delores Purdy Cocoran, for putting me in touch with Mr. Horse!). Michael shares much information and anecdotes about his work in the entertainment industry over the years, from a Native perspective.

MS: Tell me about your work on AOEII.
MH: It was a wonderful experience. I really like doing it. I love doing voiceovers, because we know we come from a long tradition of story telling. I've always been -- from the time I was very small -- fascinated by animation. I've also been a visual artist way before I was in the movie business and had a fascination with animation.

MS: You've been in the business for a few years now...
MH: [Laughs.] Well, I didn't mean to be in it this long, but yeah I've accumulated a lot of years!

MS: …and one of my 1st introductions to you in the entertainment industry was a film you did back in 1981.
MH: The Lone Ranger, yeah.

MS: I'm sure you get that quite a bit.

MH: Oh, it's so funny: I had done stunt in movies and things – and I was a musician for years -- but didn't really want to be in the 'movie business.' I was renting my art studio from an agent and she said, "You want to be Tonto on the Lone ranger remake?" And I went, "?…no." I said, "Lady, I'm an activist." She said, "Well, what’s the matter with it?"

And I knew Jay Silverheels -- loved Jay -- but it wasn't the story I was looking to do. But, finally I went down, met the people, and decided to do it. Terrible movie. Didn't take me long to figure out that film is only going to be good as it’s written.

MS: Exactly.

MH: It can get worse -- but, it's only going to be good as its story.

You know, I've done some bad stuff; I've done some good stuff. I did Twin Peaks, which I thought was ground-breaking television and a great Native role. I did a series in Canada, a prime-time Native series, for three years called, North of 60.

MS: Yeah, I've seen both of those and I think Twin Peaks is avant garde, even by today's standards.

MH: Yeah. I live in the Berkeley area and I have kids following me around. I go, "Can I help you?" and they say, "Are you the Hawk?" And I say, "Yes, I am!"

Lynch and I were friends long before that. I did something for the French bicentennial with him and Harry Dean Stanton. I said, "What are you going to do next?" He said, "I'm going to do a TV series." I said, "Yeah, sure...you call me when that happens!"

There wouldn't be all these things on television today if it weren't for Twin Peaks opening up that door.

MS: Yeah, and all the careers that have been made from the series as well...

MH: Yeah, it's the same story, over and over. I just saw the [Bury My Heart at] Wounded Knee thing and it was terrible. We're dealing with a true, actual story dealing with our history -- and once again Hollywood just decides to put characters where they’re not supposed to be, to condense things. This whole portrayal of Sitting Bull as being this sort of "suck-up" to show business...it's just appalling.

MS: You know, I haven't been able to force myself to watch that yet...

MH: Well, how about Mel Gibson's movie? Sure it’s a little violent, but do I define the whole Christian movement by the Crusades? What about the [Aztec] advancements in mathematics?

I'm looking for stuff that deals with my culture from the 1920, 1930, 1940...you don't see that. They rehash the same stories: it's the Last of the Mohicans and Thunderheart, but there are so many wonderful stories to still tell out there. That's why I’m really excited about digital film, because it puts back in the hands of filmmakers.

MS: I agree. Going back to AOEIII, what is your comment, if any, about Native Americans in video games?

MH: We still have a long ways to go. [Laughs] You know, they're fun to do and sometimes you have to take it not too seriously.

I think it has great potential, especially for teaching Native and non-Native kids about other people's cultures. It's still in the hands of others, though...but, I think there are some really bright Native kids somewhere out there that are going to do some really great stuff [in video games].

MS: Certainly. When writing articles like this one, I continually say, "Ok, it is time for us Indigenous people to get in the creative seat."

MH: There are so many things out there...there are environmental concerns and a lot of contemporary issues that deal with everybody on this planet...that could be seen through Indigenous eyes.

MS: Speaking of eyes, let's get back to your visual art. What do you think of AOEIII from a visual standpoint.

MH: I've never seen it...like I said, I'm not a 'video game guy'. I'd like to see it…is it any good?

MS: Actually, it's pretty good; great attention given to culturally-specific clothing and articles.

MH: Oh good. I hear it's quite popular.

MS: Yeah, it's done pretty well. I think they did a pretty job with us [Native people].

MH: Oh, that's nice. You know I do something and they don't really give me whole story behind it. So, I go, "I hope I haven’t done something I shouldn't have." But really, what was given to me was ok with me.

MS: But, as you say, video games have a long way to go.

MH: Good storytelling -- which is good gaming -- good storytelling and good interaction have no racial boundaries. I think we have a long way to go with all of it; it's still in its infancy. God, the graphics are amazing! Being an old-time guy, someone will show me something on the computer and I’m just awed at the graphics and quick interaction.

MS: Anything else you want to add?

MH: No, I just excited to see people like yourself and I know there's a lot of young Native kids that are really interested in this media -- and it grows so quickly and changes so fast! In the next 4 or 5 years I’m going to see what I’m really looking for -- and it can be done anywhere!

That's the amazing thing. It doesn't have to be done in some major city; someone can do it on a reservation or urban setting.

MS: And laptops make it even more mobile to do these things. I really appreciate your taking time to answer my questions.

MH: Call me anytime. I thank you for letting me be involved. I think video games are a new step for Native entertainers and I’m fascinated by it.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Austin GDC - Day 2

 

Mmmm...Outsourcing

Like Bacos, the 2nd day in Austin was, "even better." While there was still no sign of the much-needed booth babes, the Expo was open and the workshops and discussions continued throughout the Austin Convention Center. At least some vendors were smart enough to hand out free beer and cocktails!

Many good contacts were made during this networking event. Unlike last year - where Expo vendors were hesitant at best to consider 'outsourcing' or contracting out artistic projects - many studios seemed more than willing to entertain the idea of contracting work out to outside artists and studios, like alterNative Media.

Vendors such as, Perpetual Entertainment (who is creating a new Star Trek franchise game), Icarus Studios (who had a massive, 2-story exhibit), Spacetime Studios (who has a new "unnamed project" [in-production] coming down the line very soon), and Wild Hare Enterainment (also, a relatively new studio), all expressed interest in contracting some aspects of work out to a 3D art studio.

At least that's what they told me. :)

Otherwise, the Austin GDC was a good chance to meet other professionals working - and actually making a living - in the game industry. Special mention of Gerard K. Marino, composer, who just finished work on God of War II (unfortunately, I had to leave before Gerard's scheduled speaker presentation) and Ben Long of Noise Buffet, who also has some recent game work (be sure to check out his album for sale at his website!).

All in all, a great place to be in September. aNm will continue to work on establishing connections within the gaming community and offer its artistic services for those studios needing high-quality and professionally expedited 2D and 3D art.

Monday, September 10, 2007

Austin GDC - Day 1

 

aNm at GDC


Things were off to a bang on the first day of the Austin Game Developers Conference...vendors were setting up for the next day's Expo, so there was plenty of time to meet, greet, and attend the various workshops.

While I will highlight some of the various contacts made in later blogs, here I wanted to mention one of the presentations that struck a chord with me.

Evan Skolnick - Editorial Director, Vicarious Visions and long-time writer / editor at Marvel Comics - presented a very interesting topic for the "Writing for Games" track of the GDC, entitled: "Everything I Needed to Know about Game Writing I Learned from Star Trek."

This entire presentation will be available later, from the proceedings, but the gist of his talk was highly enlightening and very interesting. In it, Skolnick discussed the idea of archetype, hero, villian, and everything one needs to know to make better games, film, stories...or anything! Again, I will pull more info later, but his work deserves special mention.

Overall, the Austin GDC was a success and aNm looks forward to continuing conversations and potential partnerships from the networking contacts made there.

Look out for info more soon!

Friday, August 31, 2007

Mayan village in 3D

 

Technically "Cool"

A recent issue ("Digging for Details" Volume: 30 Issue: 8 (Aug 2007)) of Computer Graphics World provided insight to an ancient Mayan city, rebuilt in digital 3D form. Clement Valla, an architect who utlizes 2d and 3d graphics, worked with Allan Maca, an archaeologist from Colgate University, to recreate an ancient temple area of Copan (near present-day Honduras).

This project is interesting for a number of points. First, the importance of using technology, such as high-end 3D computer modeling for academic and scientific purposes, should always be at the forefront of our minds, as 3D modelers, animators, and artists.

Second, this project illustrates the importance of technology for cultural continuance. Projects such as this allow individuals virtual access to aspects of material culture that might otherwise not be available to them. For instance, whereas scientifically-trained archaeologists might be allowed to view and handle various artifacts, most of us "regular folk" would not have the same opportunity (and rightly so, as mistreatment or mishandling of the artifact could permanently damage such evidence).

Yet, by reconstructing ancient villages, burial sites, temples, and even individual artifacts, the general public is allowed to break through the "glass case," metaphorically, and experience the culture on a more immediate basis.

3D Simulation for Indigenous Culture

This type of immersive, 3D simulated environment is especially important for Indigenous groups, like the Caddo Nation, whose material artifacts represent a key aspect of more fully understanding and preserving the culture itself. This idea lends itself to another added benefit of using 3D modeling and animations (i.e., simulations) for Indigenous representation: cultural continuance: by immersing the audience within the simulated experience, important lessons and culture-specific perspectives are communicated in a virtual milieu.

In all, projects like this one are important for many reasons, including those mentioned above. However, as always, it is important to utilize Native-perspective when creating representations of culture in any media format. While the article listed many of entities involved in its creations - the Department of Anthropology and Sociology at Colgate University (New York), in partnership with PAPAC (funded by National Geographic and Colgate) and sponsored by the Honduran Ministry of Culture - there was no mention of any Indigenous-specific individuals working on this the PAPAC project.

Of course, the article might have overlooked this element (Allan Maca, Colgate archaeologist, does not have his specific ethnicity listed)...but too many times these sort of endeavors are not implemented by Native people ourselves. Thus, while all this (virtual reconstruction and recreation) is very COOL, there is a specific need for Indigenous people to author ANY media containing Indigenous representation, in order to maintain a truer ethnic/cultural perspective (versus a Euro-centric one). (For extra credit: This theme is a major one present in my book, "Native Americans in Comic Books," coming soon from McFarland Publications.)

To sum

I welcome more endeavors like the PAPAC project, both from a technological and cultural perspective. Yet (just like in almost every other media), there needs to be more Native interaction from the creative perspective.

aNm continues to look for major projects that support these ideals (technology and cultural continuance), as well as financial opportunities that can facilitate such projects. If you know of any such activities, please contact us and share your ideas.

Austin GDC !

 

alterNative Media in Austin

alterNative Media will be attending the Austin Game Developers Conference, September 5-7, 2007 in Texas. The Austin GDC is always a great time and there will be a host of really good vendors, people, students, artists, beer, and (of course) booth babes! :)
aNm will be on the lookout for the following at the GDC:
  • networking opportunities for additional contracts with independent and AAA game studios
  • art commissions
  • innovations in 3D media, content, sims, games & more
  • collaboration projects with other artist
In addition, aNm will have the chance to revisit some vendors and studios we made contact with last year at the Expo, many of which have already been "warned" (lol) that we are coming.

We will report on the conference as events surface, so keep an eye out at this (blog) location. Hope to see you there!

Monday, August 13, 2007

Animation Project: "Chubby Ninja vs. Master Key"

 

3D Animation Short

Summer classes are over at the Academy of Art and for my final animation project, I created "Chubby Ninja vs. Master Key". This was great fun and I learned quite a bit. While there are still some refinements that can be made, I am happy overall with this 12 seconds of 3D animation.





Monday, July 23, 2007

Making Games with Freeware

 

Free Resources to Make Games

At a recent panel discussion at the Eiteljorg Museum, fellow artist Steve Sanderson (creator of the Darkness Calls comic) and I commented on how Native American youth - especially those on reservation-type and other rural areas surrounding Indigenous lands - may not even realise their full potential, based on socio-economic factors.
With that in mind, there are a number of free resources available online which Native American youth (and anyone else) could use to hone their artistic and technical skills. Using these resources as a springboard, one could easily create an workshop to introduce these tools to Native kids. Doing so would allow them to realise they do indeed have creative options for their future...and maybe with that, some additional hope.
Listed here are some various freeware solutions along with some comments. All of these programs have the specific goal of video game creation and design - however, many of these can be used for other purposes, such as digital art. Keep in mind, these are in no particular order.
Alice
"The focus of the Alice project is now to provide the best possible first exposure to programming for students ranging from middle schoolers to college students."
I think this is a great program, especially for those individuals really interested in the nuts and bolts of how video games work. The video tutorials and interface are somewhat intuitive and easy to use.

Blender 3D/
"Blender is the free open source 3D content creation suite, available for all major operating systems under the GNU General Public License."
This is one of the best resources for individuals to get hands-on experience creating 3D content. Certainly, there is a particular learning curve to this software (some of which is intuitive and some is not). However, there are tons of online resources, communities, galleries, and tutorials. So, with a little patience and reading, one can actually create usable 3D content.
Another great thing about Blender is its availability for commercial use...meaning, that you are able to do anything you want with the stuff you create (including commercial use). For those that don't have the financial resources to purchase software like Maya (which is a professional industry standard for 3D), Blender is welcome and affordable miracle.
GIMP
"GIMP is an acronym for GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is a freely distributed program for such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring. It has many capabilities. It can be used as a simple paint program, an expert quality photo retouching program, an online batch processing system, a mass production image renderer, an image format converter, etc."
The layout is simple and easy to understand. Using GIMP can easily prepare individuals on the basics of what more professional packages, like Photoshop, can offer. This is an excellent resource for anyone interested in image manipulation. With GIMP, you can create textures for 3D models, touch up photos, digital paint your drawings and sketches, and even create professional-looking comic books and other art.
GameDev
"The Scrolling Game Development Kit ("GameDev") is a free / freeware open source tool for 2-D game development. It is designed for the Windows 9x/DirectX platform, and targeted at people spanning a range of skill levels. It can be used by the beginner to become familiar with the structure of computer games and to create complete games that don't require any coding. It also has applications for the experienced developer who perhaps simply wants to use the program to draw the graphics or define maps. And in the middle there's applications for creating a game and controlling it through scripting."
This software comes with some down-to-earth tutorials on how to get started making working 2D games. GameDev is an excellent resource to get individuals involved in the video game making process. Everything is "drag and drop", so there is no need for prior programming knowledge.

Monday, July 16, 2007

Good News - New Contracts!

 

aNm Services

It's been quite eventful few months so far, but we're not through yet!

I am pleased to announce that aNm has not only acquired a contract with Chickasaw Nation Industries ("CNI") from late last year (2006), but we have also been awarded contracts with the Caddo Nation (May 2007) and All Points Logistics, Inc. ("APL" June 2007) for various aspects of website design and maintenance.

Look for changes on both the Caddo website as well as APL's "FirstSource" website associated with a US Government Department!

Also, do please keep alterNative Media in mind with any creative project you may need. Remember, we can take a variety of different artistic and creative projects - including (but never limited to) sculpture, illustration, sketchwork, 2D animation, 3D modeling, and yes, even 3D simulations (that's "video games," for us regular folk!). Contact us today to see how we can make your project a reality.

Thursday, July 12, 2007

CGSociety - New Membership

 

Professional Membership

I am now a member of CGSociety, the "Society of Digital Artists"! This global society offers to connect artists and celebrate the medium digital of digital art.

In addition to other benefits, I have a portfolio page to display my digital art. Check it out and view some of the other great CGSociety artists as well.
CGPortfolio - Michael Sheyahshe

Friday, July 06, 2007

Check out Mike Kennedy's FB Page!

 

Comic Artist at SC

The recent SoonerCon '07 experience was really great. There were a lot of vendors, artists, fans, and everything in between. (We could've used more singers at the karaoke bar, but more songs for me!)

Mike Kennedy was one of the featured artists at SoonerCon and we were able to participate in a few panel discussions here and there.

In addition to being a really great guy as well as a vast information source about comic books and their creation, Mike is working on his newest project, Rough Cut, a "indie" comic book series.

Check out Mike's illustrative work at his Facebook page, read his blog, and maybe leave some comments. Good stuff.
https://www.facebook.com/mike.kennedy.3597

Sunday, June 03, 2007

Look for our Booth at SoonerCon '07

 

aNm at SoonerCon

alterNative Media will have a booth at "SoonerCon 2007 - June 8-10 in Oklahoma City! The pop-culture, science fiction, comic, anime and fantasy convention!"

I will also have some art space where you can view and purchase some of my work and some information about my upcoming book. Come by and see us or just to check out the crowd. (I'm sure there will be someone in costume there !) aNm will also be participating in various panel discussions throughout the convention, so feel free to drop in and say hello!

Monday, March 12, 2007

alterNative Media represented at San Francisco Art Show

 

Art To-Go


I will have an illustration, "Mother o' Pearls," at Regeneration," The Bay Area Anarchist Book Fair Art Show March 18-19, 2007." This show is described as "A group art show expressing anarchy, community, self-reliance, resistance, and freedom..."

This is quite an honor to be showcased alongside such great artists, such as America Meredith, an Indigenous artist with roots here in Oklahoma.

If you are in the SF area during this time, please do check out this show and show your support for these artists and their work.

Sunday, February 11, 2007

Dude Vision - Google Video

 

Indie Filmmaker

Jon Proudstar, a Native individual that I had the pleasure to interview for my book based on his creation of Tribal Force comic book, has a new film out called Dude Vision. The movie is a short (around 27 min or so) and is worth viewing, as it presents ideas from the view of a Native American male.

Also, it is worth noting, the film does not suffer from many stereotypes that can be found in media. A positive example of this is Jon's character, an Indigenous man, does not drink. Here's another stereotype-buster: the film isn't an "art film" and doesn't portray the "plight of the Indian" (to paraphrase Vine Deloria...man, we will miss him!)...it's a straightforward story from a particular point of view.

Good work, Jon. Keep 'em coming!
Check out Dude Vision - Google Video

Thursday, February 01, 2007

Slipped my mind...

 

Swiss Cheese Memory

Guess I should've already made the announcement about the website for my new book, Native Americans in Comic Books, going "live" some time ago. Heh. Sorry.

Um, check it out, if you have some time.
http://www.nativecomicbooks.com

Native Americans in Comic Book - news travels

 

Comics in the News

Very cool that this website picked up the news. Seems there is some genuine interest in this topic out there. Of course, this blurb is the best kind: short, sweet, and to the point...

Comic World News Headlines

Monday, January 29, 2007

Article on Comic Book Resources website

 

Sharing Ideas

A very interesting article at CBR. Seems many of us share similar ideas on Indigenous comic book characters. Check it out...feedback welcome.

Comic Book Resources - CBR News: Native Americans in Comics

Friday, January 19, 2007

Eiteljorg Museum Special Program: "Native American Portrayals in Comics"

 

Workshop in Indiana

Based on the attention my article in Native Peoples Magazine on Indigenous video game characters--and them finding out about my book on Native comic book characters from McFarland Publishing--the Eiteljorg has invited me to be a speaker at this all-day event March 10, 2007.

Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art»Programs & Festivals

This will be an excellent opportunity to discuss my book, get open dialog from other experts about the subject, and drum up more interest for the book. Be sure to come check out the event if you are in the (Indianapolis, IN) area!

Monday, January 01, 2007

Article in Native Peoples Magazine

 

Published Article

An article I've written, "Searching for Indigenous Heroes," about Native characters in video games, has been picked up by Native Peoples magazine. The issue hits newsstands soon, so pick up yours or order it online today!

Here's the description from the Native Peoples website: 2007 January/February:
"Viewpoint: The author outlines the history of Indigenous heroes in the video-game realm, and finds some losers and at least one game worthy of its Native roots: Prey, with voice by Michael Greyeyes (Cree). By Michael Sheyahshe (Caddo)."

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