The Native Lens Media Fellowship is open for applicants from American Indians, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians aged 18-24 interested in learning the craft of video production and digital storytelling. The fellowship will take place in-person in Durango and Ignacio, Colorado, on Southern Ute land. Participants will meet for several hours each day from February 25 - March 3, 2023, with project facilitators and Native filmmaker mentors to learn about story development, production and post-production practices. Fellows will produce short videos that will premiere in a showcase at the Durango Independent Film Festival on Saturday, March 4.
In addition, fellows will attend DIFF screenings and panels and have the opportunity to meet and network with other filmmakers in attendance. Fellows will also be encouraged to develop a film proposal for a future project, to submit to Vision Maker Media’s Creative Shorts Fellowship for funding and project support.
Please note: There is no cost to participate in the fellowship, but at this time, there is no funding available to support travel costs or lodging for the fellowship.
Previous media experience is not required to participate in the fellowship.
Applications due December 31, 2022. Applicants will be notified in January.
Please direct any questions to Native Lens Project Coordinator Colleen Thurston: colleen@nativelens.org
Native Lens Media Fellowship Partners:
Vision Maker Media is the premier source of public media by and about Native Americans. Vision Maker Media’s mission is empowering and engaging Native people to share stories. We envision a world changed and healed by understanding Native stories and the public conversations they generate. As a member of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting’s Multicultural Alliance, we work with VMM funded producers to develop, produce and distribute programs for all public media. VMM supports training to increase the number of Native Americans and Alaska Natives producing public broadcasting programs.
Native Lens is a collaborative digital media project that showcases films and videos produced by Indigenous people in the Americas. Native Lens is a collaboration between Rocky Mountain PBS and KSUT Tribal Radio in Ignacio, Colorado.
Durango Independent Film Festival is the premiere festival experience in the Four Corners region. DIFF serves to connect our community with independent filmmakers, engaging the audience in a unique viewing and interactive experience. DIFF is committed to showcasing Native film, and additionally has been bringing educational and creative films to students and teachers in the Ignacio and Durango school districts for the past 17 years as part of our REEL Learning School Program.
