Short Takes…  

• Question:  What is the most frequently  cited frustration of Native filmmakers?
  Answer: Getting their films SEEN once they are made.

  Happily, the distribution problem facing indie filmmakers is beginning to change, albeit in small but significant ways—and for that we have the omnipresent web to thank. Evidence are sites such as www.isuma.tv  which provide a free, accessible venue for Native films. Now, I am delighted to report, there is another site similarly dedicated to featuring documentaries. Whereas www.wajju.com is not restricted to screening only Native films, much of its 73 film library does have an international Indigenous flavor with the philosophy to use "documentaries to create a better future and energize the people of society." Is this cool? Yup, it sure is… 

• Louise Erdrich (Ojibway)   is the award-winning author of more than 20 novels, poetry anthologies and children’s books.  Anyone who has read her  books knows that her writing reveals a disarming fearlessness that’s refreshing in our literary culture dominated by brain candy or pompous diffidence. Well snuggle up my friends, and take a half hour to read Ms. Erdrich’s latest short story posted online in The New Yorker. Called The Reptile Garden, the story about a college girl circa 1972 is replete with angst, wit and insight. In other words, classic Erdrich:) The Reptile Garden