The Dreamspeakers International Film Festival is an annual film festival in Edmonton, Alberta, which programs a lineup of films related to First Nations, Métis, Inuit and other international indigenous peoples.Doug Johnson, "Festival to connect with community; Dreamspeakers Film Festival to bring 22 films by indigenous peoples from home and abroad to the city". Edmonton Examiner, September 14, 2016.
The oldest surviving indigenous film festival in Canada, it was first staged in 1992;Marc Horton, "Natives get ready to `tell their own stories'; Dreamspeakers Festival offers taste of everything from McBison to storytelling". Edmonton Journal, September 18, 1992. however, its inaugural edition faced some controversy when the First Nations Filmmakers Alliance pressured the festival's organizing committee to pull several scheduled films which had not been made by indigenous filmmakers.Marc Horton, "Festival cuts films shy on native content". Edmonton Journal, September 22, 1992. The Filmmakers Alliance disputed six films, threatening to boycott Dreamspeakers and start their own competing film festival if their demands were not met;Marc Horton, "Dreamspeaker splices to gala finale; Hugs and rising attendance help organizer balance rift over film white-out". Edmonton Journal, September 27, 1992. five of the six titles were ultimately pulled from the festival at the last minute, with the Alliance backing down only on the high-profile documentary film Incident at Oglala. John Paskievich, the director of the dropped film Sedna: The Making of a Myth, criticized the decision, asking "How much of a percentage of native content do you need to have? Do you need to submit to blood tests?", and Peter von Puttkamer criticized the exclusion of his films The Spirit of the Mask and Kecia: Words to Live By, calling special attention to the educational importance of Kecia as a documentary about a young First Nations girl living with HIV/AIDS.Marc Horton, "Director of yanked Dreamspeaker films hits fest `fascism'". Edmonton Journal, September 22, 1992.
The festival's organizing committee and film selection process were restructured in response to the controversy before the second event was staged in 1993,Kerry Powell, "Dreamspeakers returns; Aboriginal arts festival scaled back in bid to cover costs". Edmonton Journal, July 15, 1993. and most later coverage of the festival has treated 1993 rather than 1992 as the launch date of the festival in its current form.
For financial reasons, the festival was not staged in 1999 after failing to secure an arts grant from the city of Edmonton."No city cash for Dreamspeakers". Edmonton Journal, March 17, 1999. It was revived in 2003 as a programming stream within the city's Global Visions Film Festival,Bill Rankin, "Dreamspeakers film fest resurrected through Global Visions". Edmonton Journal, October 24, 2003. before being officially relaunched as a separate event again in 2004.Bill Rankin, "Newly revived Dreamspeakers festival kept to two days for now". Edmonton Journal, June 24, 2004.
The festival also coordinates the Dreamspeakers Walk of Honour, a public walk of fame in the city's Beaver Hills House Park devoted to distinguished Canadian indigenous people.Christine Fiddler, "Festival announces new site for Walk of Honour". Windspeaker, August 1, 2008.
In 2021 Christine Sokaymoh Frederick, Dreamspeakers’ executive director and team moved the programme of 35 films online after cancelling in 2020 due to the COVID19 pandemic.
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