June 29, 2024
6pm, 138 min (Doors 5:30pm)
Now Instant Image Hall, 939 Chung King Rd, Los Angeles 90012
All proceeds from ticket sales will be donated to the Gabrielino-Tongva Springs Foundation.
Support for this screening is generously provided by the MacArthur Foundation
COUSIN Collective presents a double feature presentation of Itam Hakim, Hopiit (dir. Victor Mesayesva, Jr., 1984) and Ste. Anne (dir. Rhayne Vermette, 2021) followed by a conversation with both artists in attendance.
ITAM HAKIM, HOPIIT
Victor Masayesva, Jr.
1985, 58 min
Celebrating the Hopi Tricentennial, Itam Hakim, Hopiit is a poetic visualization of Hopi philosophy and prophesy. The myths, religion, legends and history of the Hopi people, articulated through the ancient oral tradition, are translated by Masayesva to video. Speaking in the Hopi language, Ross Macaya, the oldest member of a storytelling clan, weaves together personal and cultural history, recounting stories of the Hopi Emergence, the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, the age of the conquistadors, and the story of the Bow Clan of his father. In direct contrast to the interpretive practice of ethnography, Masayesva articulates his cultural heritage through observation, and by allowing a Hopi voice to be heard. His eloquent rendering of the natural landscape of Arizona, and the cadence of the storyteller's language, exerts a mesmerizing beauty. The title translates as "We, someone, the Hopi."
This presentation will be the premiere of a newly remastered Hopi language version from the original master. Translation guides will be provided.
STE. ANNE
Rhayne Vermette
2021, 80 min
As a party wanders into the night, word arrives that Renée has emerged from obscurity. This cataclysmic moment ignites Modeste’s awkward reunion with his older sibling. Renée has been missing for years and her presence unsettles the family, which also includes her own daughter, Athene. As Renée begins to form her dreams from fragments of her past, ominous premonitions disrupt the land.
Shot over the course of two years, Ste. Anne traces an allegorical reclamation of land through personal, symbolic and historical sites all across Treaty 1 Territory, heartland of the Métis Nation.