Indigenous Program

• Shorts Lab: Hawaii

  The Sundance Institute’s Native American and Indigenous Program, in collaboration with the Honolulu Museum of Art, will host a story-focused lab on May 14-16, 2016 in Honolulu, Hawaii. The goal of this lab is to provide Indigenous artists based in Hawaii with support and mentorship by Creative Advisors as they develop their short film screenplays.

  In order to eligibly apply to this lab, you must meet the following requirements:

  • Be a Native Hawaiian or Indigenous Pacific Islander based in Hawaii
  • Submit a short film screenplay no longer than 15 pages
  • Be located in the Greater Honolulu area and/or can provide your own lodging and travel to the lab

  Applications for this event were due March 4, 2016.

Fellowships

• Merata Mita Fellowship

  Application	Applications now closed
  Dates	2020 Sundance Film Festival
  Fellowship Description	One artist will be selected as a Merata Mita Indigenous Women Artist Fellow. This fellow will be endeavoring to make their first feature film. Recipient will receive a cash grant and a yearlong continuum of support from the Native American and Indigenous Program and Sundance Institute. Recipient is required to attend the 2020 Sundance Film Festival.
  Location	Park City, Utah
  Eligibility	Indigenous artists who identify as women. First time feature filmmaker.
  Description	The Sundance Institute Merata Mita fellowship pays tribute to the immense artistic contributions and memory of Merata Mita (Ngati Pikiao/Ngai te Rangi). Merata served as an adviser and artistic director to the Sundance Institute's Native Filmmakers Lab from 2000 to 2009 where she mentored and developed some of the top Indigenous talent in today's film industry. In her time as a screenwriter and director herself, she is the first-and only-Maori woman to write and direct a dramatic feature film. This fellowship serves to continue Merata Mita's legacy, and to cultivate a stage for other Indigenous women around the world to tell their stories.

  
  If you have additional questions, please contact native_program@sundance.org

• 2019 Indigenous Program Full Circle Fellowship

  Application	Application now closed
  Dates	Native Filmmaker Lab, May 2020, 2021 Sundance Film Festival
  Fellows	3 to attend Native Filmmakers Lab, and Sundance Film Festival, and other TBD Indigenous Program events
  Location	Santa Fe, New Mexico, Park City, UT, and TBD Locations
  Eligibility	Native American youth (18-24), must reside in the United States.
  Description	Each year, Sundance Institute's Indigenous Program aims to support the next generation of Native American storytellers through the Full Circle Fellowship. Apply now to get the chance to attend the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, and receive other year-round opportunities to learn from the world's greatest filmmakers. The fellowship is open to Native youth ages 18-24 based in the US.

Upcoming Events

• Bridged Beats Arts & Music Festival, Los Angeles, CA 07/20 - Civic Center Studios DTLA

  Join us for a free public screening of 2019 Sundance Film Festival Indigenous Shorts. The screening will take place at 3:30pm as apart of the Bridged Beats Arts & Music Festival fundraiser for the Outlast Film Camp, which supports the development of young Native filmmakers on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The screening will be followed by a panel discussion with Sundance Indigenous Program staff and other members of the film industry.

• Grand Rapids, MI Public Screening 07/29 - Peter Wege Auditorium, Wealthy Theatre

  Join us for a free community screening of Native American and Indigenous short films straight from the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. Local filmmaker and Sundance Institute Indigenous Program alumnus Shane McSauby (Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians) will be premiering his latest work alongside the 2019 Festival shorts from the Native Forum. The screening will be followed by a Q&A.

Labs

The Indigenous Program has built and sustained an Indigenous film circle. The cycle of our work begins by scouting for and identifying Native American and Indigenous artists, bringing them through the mechanisms of support at Sundance Institute to get their work made and shown, then bringing the filmmakers and their work back to native lands. The Native Lab Fellowship has been a vital part of supporting Indigenous filmmakers full-circle since 2004.

• Native Filmmakers Lab Fellowship

  Application	Application now closed
  Dates	May 2020
  Grant Pool	2 projects
  Location	Santa Fe, New Mexico
  Eligibility	Native American, Native Hawaiian, and Alaskan Native film artists working in the U.S.
  Description	Fellowship to provide direct support to emerging Native American, Native Hawaiian, and Alaskan Native film artists working in the U.S. The Fellowship will support first time filmmakers through the process of shooting a short film under the guidance of a Supervising Producer and mentoring Director.

Upcoming Events