Podcasts
Amplifying Indigenous Voices
Sonic Journey Four: Ma's House
In our latest Sonic Journey, join us on the lands of the Shinnecock Nation, which have been cared for by the Shinnecock People for over 10,000 years. Here, photographer and artist Jeremy Dennis has restored his family’s home in order to create a place for creativity, care, and community for a new generation of BIPOC artists. This unique space is called Ma’s House, and Jeremy documented the building’s restoration in a short film of the same name.
Lean closer and listen to fond remembrances of Ma from her descendants. Sense the transformation with the sawing and hammering of Jeremy’s construction. And feel your hair rustled by the salty breezes of the Atlantic Ocean.
Sonic Journey Three: SŪKŪJULA TEI (Stories of My Mother)
Welcome to the rich desert landscape of the Wayuu People on the Guajira Peninsula in northern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela. You hear more from birds, goats, and cacti in this story than you do people, and when you do hear human voices, they’re speaking Wayuunaiki, the language of about half of Wayuu Peoples, a language currently undergoing a revitalization. This Sonic Journey centers the film SŪKŪJULA TEI (Stories of My Mother), the story of two Wayuu women teaching the next generation valuable lessons about reciprocity. Even if you don’t speak Wayuunaiki, the rhythms and tones of the elders in the story will no doubt stir in you memories and lessons from your own parents, grandparents, and ancestors.
Sonic Journey Two: Weckuwapok (The Approaching Dawn)
In Seedcast's second Sonic Journey, join the circle as we bear witness to a Wabanaki ceremony singing up the sun. We’ll listen to spoken words, music, and the ocean breeze that fills the soundscape of the short film Weckuwapok (The Approaching Dawn). We will have a front seat to a story by Passamaquoddy Language Keeper and Storyteller Roger Paul, warm words from filmmaker Chris Newell, a special contribution from Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland (the first Native cabinet secretary in the United States), and a collaboration of music and songs from Chris, Yo-Yo Ma, and Lauren Stevens.
Princess Daazhraii Johnson and the generation reclaiming Gwich'in
Princess Daazhraii Johnson (Neets'aii Gwich'in) is an Indigenous TV and film producer on a journey of learning, reclaiming, and revitalizing her ancestral language of Gwich’in, which is only spoken by a few hundred people.
The Life-Giving Pottery of Katsitsionni Fox
“When I'm making pots, I'm thinking all the way back to creation.” - Katsitionni Fox
Katsitsionni Fox (Haudenosaunee artist, Bear Clan) takes us inside her studio and shares how making clay pots connects her to her ancestors, the women who made pots for daily use in Akwesasne, a Mohawk Territory in upstate New York. Katsitsionni is also an award-winning director and is creating a film for the second season of Reciprocity Project.
Sonic Journey One: Diiyeghan naii Taii Tr’eedaa
“I’ll always remember my grandfather’s stories... about what it means to be a Gwich'in person. We want our children to live like our Ancestors.” - Alisha Carlson, translation from Gwich’in
We hope you’re ready for something different. In this episode of Seedcast, we’re going on a Sonic Journey, immersing ourselves in the words and sounds from a story told entirely in the Gwich’in language. “Diiyeghan naii Taii Tr’eedaa (We Will Walk the Trail of Our Ancestors)” is a short film created by friends Princess Daazhraii Johnson and Alisha Carlson, who are working to revitalize the Gwich’in language and keep the lessons of their elders and ancestors alive in the Boreal. In this episode, hear the sounds of snowshoes crunching on ice, crackling fires, and lessons passed down from Alisha’s grandfather, Chief Reverend Trimble Gilbert, to her and her children.
ᏙᎯ (Tohi) with Brit Hensel
Seedcast is proud to re-release our third episode ever, an interview with filmmaker Brit Hensel (Cherokee Nation). When first released in December of 2020, our team was just beginning to learn how to produce a podcast. We still love the rawness and honesty of this conversation between Brit and host Jessica Ramirez.
In this episode, Brit talks about the meaning of reciprocity, cultural preservation by way of language, how the ways in which we treat animals reflect how we treat each other, and the importance of narrative sovereignty. When we made this, we already knew that Brit was a bright star. Since the original release of this episode, Brit’s film ᎤᏕᏲᏅ (What They’ve Been Taught), which she created with Keli Gonzales (Cherokee Nation), was a selection of the 2022 Sundance Film Festival – which made Brit the first ever female Cherokee director to have a film featured at Sundance – and earned an IDA Award nomination for best short film.
Celestial Wayfinding and Pili Ka Mo’o with Justyn Ah Chong
Justyn Ah Chong (Kānaka Maoli) is a climate storyteller who guides creative projects in support of Indigenous land sovereignty in Hawai’i. In this episode, Justyn shares the magic of circumnavigating the globe guided only by the wind and stars, on the Polynesian voyaging canoe Hōkūleʻa that inspired a cultural renaissance. We also hear excepts from Justyn’s Emmy-award winning film Pili Ka Moʻo, which shares the fight of the Fukumitsu ʻOhana (family) of Hakipuʻu trying to protect their ancestors’ remains from a big corporate ranch.
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