In the Land of the Head Hunters (dir. Edward S. Curtis, 1914, USA, 65 minutes) was the first feature film made in British Columbia and is the oldest extant feature made in Canada. It’s also the first feature made with an entirely indigenous North American cast. A portrait of the Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw (pronounced: KWOKwok-ya-wokw) people of northern Vancouver Island and the central coast, it was directed by Edward S. Curtis, the renowned American photographer of First Nations life. The film mixes documentary and dramatic elements, recording authentic traditions and rituals, including the potlatch ceremony.
This screening will be live scored by musician and composer Laura Ortman.
Laura Ortman (White Mountain Apache) is a Brooklyn based composer, musician and artist. She produces solo albums, live performances and film/art soundtracks and frequently collaborates with artists in film, music, art, dance, multi-media, activism and poetry, such as Tony Conrad, Jock Soto, Raven Chacon, Nanobah Becker, Okkyung Lee, Martin Bisi, Caroline Monnet, Michelle Latimer and Martha Colburn. She plays violin, Apache violin, piano, electric guitar, keyboards, pedal steel guitar, sings through a megaphone, and makes field recordings. Ortman’s notable performances includes venues at the Whitney Museum of American Art, The National Museum of the American Indian, the Museum of Modern Art, The Kitchen, MoMA P.S. 1, Centre Pompidou, Musée d’Art Contemporain de Montréal, SF MoMA, Cathedral of St. John the Divine, The Knitting Factory, CBGB’s, St. Marks Church, Dia Art Foundation, the Wave Farm, amongst countless other established and DIY venues in the US, Canada and Western Europe.
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