A film-training program designed to welcome rural Cherokee youth into the digital revolution, Cherokee Eye is an annual 6 day event: groups from several communities come together to learn the basics of film production and the elements of teamwork, planning, leadership, and attention to detail – all central to film-making.
During the first five days, each team member rotates through the different positions (director, camera operator, microphone boom, light reflector, slate and script supervisor) as the shooting teams produce a variety of seven to nine short films. On the sixth and final day, the families, friends and teachers attend a screening of the films and a presentation of diplomas that recognize the participants’ hard work and that initiate the participants into the fellowship of film makers.
The kids’ films are included, free of charge, into that year’s International Cherokee Film Festival. Three films have earned awards. Cherokee Eye is acknowledged as the youth section of the festival and operates on an $11,000 budget from the ICFF.
The Cherokee Eye staff is composed of two groups: the producers and the mentors.
Tribal member Reva Crawford, head of Solutions for Cherokee Nation, leads the producers. Instrumental in all logistical support and organization, she finds the communities, the kids, the mentors, and the food, shelter and transportation to make it all happen. She even creates the diplomas and runs the budget to provide equipment to the communities.
Bill Anderson is a master film maker and an award-winning director of documentaries who brings 40 years of experience to the project along with a natural and enthusiastic love of teaching. A long time Angeleno now working out of Cinncinatti, Bill paid his own way and expenses in order to be able to contribute to the success of Cherokee Eye when the project first began. His dedication to the quality and evolution of the program has been immeasurable.
Reva's brother, tribal member Tom Allard, is a film and tech theatre
instructor at Polytechnic School in Pasadena, California. Tom initiated, wrote, and received two consecutive grants from the school in order to seed the
program that began in the summer of 2005. Polytechnic also donated older i-Macs
so that each community would retain their ability to produce film independently.
Community mentors are the heart of the program. They gather, transport, support, encourage, and chaperone each of the groups and enable individual projects throughout the year in their respective communities.
They include, chronologically-
Raylene and Gary Vann of Greasy Creek Community
Shari Kamp of Jay
Mark Parman of Webbers Falls- Warner
and Debbie Humphries of Cookson Hills Mission
