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Gath & K'iyh: Listen to Heal

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FILM

Pronunciation and Style Guide
Gath & K'iyh: Listen to Heal [phonetic: GATH and key] - Please use the full title including :Listen to Heal.

A film by: Princess Daazhraii Johnson

Synopsis
Gath and K’iyh: Listen to Heal is a poetic visual exploration of a community-led creative arts project aimed at better understanding and restoring our relationship with gath (king salmon) and k’iyh (birch) relatives as we navigate our feelings around climate change in Alaska. Gath and K’iyh are words from the Benhti Kokhut’ana Kenaga’ (Lower Tanana) dialect spoken in the Interior Region of Alaska. Guided by the voice and wisdom of Ahtna Elder Fred John, this film invites viewers to pause, to listen, to sing and dream together and ask how we might be in better relationship to the natural world around us.

Logline
In Alaska, community comes together to create music with Yo-Yo Ma as a critical part of collective healing and radical hope for the future.

FILMMAKERS

Director
Princess Daazhraii Johnson (Neets'aii Gwich'in) lives on the traditional territory of lower Tanana Dene lands in Alaska. She serves on the board of Native Movement and NDN Collective - collectively, she works to protect the lands, waters, animal and plant relatives that continue to take care of us all. She has served on the SAG-AFTRA Native American Committee since 2007 and was appointed by President Obama in 2015 to serve on the Board of Trustees for the Institute of American Indian Arts. She is a Sundance Film Alum, a Nia Tero Storytelling Fellow, former Creative Producer and an Emmy-nominated Screenwriter for the Peabody award-winning PBS Kids series "Molly of Denali." Her 2021 film Diiyeghan naii Taii Tr’eedaa (We Will Walk the Trail of our Ancestors) is part of Reciprocity Project Season 1. She is a producer on HBO’s 4th Season of True Detective and is in development for her first feature film based on an adaptation of Velma Wallis’ bestselling book, “Two Old Women”.

Editor | Cinematographer
James Johnson III is a Koyukon Athabaskan from Fairbanks, Alaska with roots in the Rampart and Kokrines villages. He is a filmmaker focused on telling narrative and documentary stories centered on climate justice, language, and traditional ways of life. He is a co-founder of the indigenous filmmaking company Deenaadai Productions LLC. James spent several years as an Indigenous evaluator before transitioning into filmmaking. He holds a certificate in Rural Human Services and BA in Sociology, both from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He is a current participant in the Alaska Native Filmmakers Intensive, an ongoing project through Native Movement and UAF Film & Theatre. Over the past several years, James has served as a primary editor on “Diiyeghan Naii Taii Tr’eedaa” and as DP and editor on another (yet to be released) commissioned short film project. James continues to build on his filmmaking skill sets while staying passionate about the work and impact his projects have on uplifting Indigenous stories.

COLLABORATORS

Native Movement
Native Movement is dedicated to building people power, rooted in an Indigenized worldview, toward healthy, sustainable, & just communities for ALL. We support grassroots-led projects that align with our vision, that endeavor to ensure social justice, Indigenous Peoples’ rights, and the rights of Mother Earth.

Fairbanks Climate Action Coalition
Through education and advocacy Fairbanks Climate Action Coalition organizes Fairbanks & Interior Alaska communities toward action to mitigate and adapt to climate change. We seek to elevate climate solutions and foster a fair, equitable, & just transition to sustainable communities — locally, regionally and globally. We seek to build a renewed & respectful relationship between all beings and the earth.

Climate Scholars Program
The Cimate Scholars Program at University of Fairbanks Alaska offers students transformative experiences in the Arctic and beyond, centered on climate resiliency, expeditionary learning, and leadership.

PRESS & ACCLAIM

News

CREDITS

Gath & K’iyh: Listen to Heal workshop

Elders | Clara Anderson, Theda Joe, Fred & Linnea John, Vernell Titus

Organizers | Aurora Bowers, Malinda Chase, Deloole’aanh Erickson, Eleanor Guthrie, Alex Hirsch, Princess Daazhraii Johnson, Michaela Stith

Artists | Aurora Bowers, Deloole’aanh Erickson, Catherine Amy Kropp, Erica Lord, Yo-Yo Ma, Natalie Schuldt, Katie Spellman (Climate Science)

Participants | Charmian Active, Malinda Chase, Joseph Cholok, Nels Christensen, Adrianne Cox, Paul Daython, Mackenzie Englishoe, Rodney Evans, Will Kleiner, Sophia Layos-Wagaman, Josie Martin, Michelle Ramirez, Zack Taktuk Smith, Lili Stith, Sophie Utterback

Special Thanks | Austin Ahmasuk, Jose Alvarado, Association of Interior Native Educators, Norman Carlo, Quinn Christopherson, Cold Climate Housing Research Center, Travis Cole, Maxine Dibert, Fairbanks Climate Action Coalition, Pattie Gonia, Tukni HolstromRod, Zion Jackson, Native Movement
Sophie Shackleton, TiaAnna Tidwell, UAF Climate Scholars, UAF President, Pat Pitney

Extra Special Thanks | Sound Postings (Office o Yo-Yo Ma), Reciprocity Project

Produced by | DEENAADÀĮ' PRODUCTIONS

IMAGES