I found these set of documentaries in CBC very interesting, and related to the topic of following paper : ” Indigenous Exhibition in the Age of Cultural Property”:
8thfire : http://www.cbc.ca/doczone/8thfire/
The same issues discussed in paper such as Trust, Power factors in negotiations with first nation communities have been outlined and depicted using media narrative techniques very well,
There was a challenge introduced in paper about prioritizing the first nations stories, art, music, and sacred objects based on what museums and tourist industry are looking for versus what first nation are aiming. I personally think, ignoring, and misbehaving these communities over years and generations has created a cultural anxiety between them, which most of conflicts presented in paper are based on that factor, and narration of these stories to a right audience (new generation), will release this cultural stress, and madness, which needs to be considered as an important factor while dealing with these communities, I believe even new techniques in documentary creations are good approaches which can help to better narrates these cultural pains, and cure this ignorance.
Please check the coming episode:
http://www.cbc.ca/doczone/8thfire//2011/11/whose-land-is-it-anyway.html
Thanks for this Bardia, I am looking forward to watching 8th Fire–it is an exciting series that tackles the really complex issues that you hint at in your post. One challenge for us in this course is to start to explore the politics of First Nations’ cultural heritage in museums without having time to really dig into the politics of Aboriginal title, land claims, colonial history, and much more, all of which are really necessary to do justice to the scale of our colonial relationship in BC. However I really like your point about the role of the medium––new techniques in documentary approaches––for communicating the complexities of cultural, political, and historical relationships. What can new media (particularly in the museum) do that analog mediums could not? Further, how might these new forms be applied in the service of social justice and reconciliation? These are questions that are applicable far beyond the BC First Nations context–we see these dynamics at play all over the world.
That is a good find, Bardia 🙂
I hope to watch it after I get my other homework out of the way 😉