Heidi-Marie Ferren is an award-winning Cherokee/Sioux-Polish-American writer, producer, actor and singer/songwriter who is currently staffed on the hit Shonda Rhimes ABC show, Station 19. Heidi is a 2023 Disney/ABC Fellowship recipient and her original pilots & screenplays have garnered awards & recognition from over three dozen film festivals worldwide. Heidi recently served as a writer… Read more »

Teotl Veliz is an Indigenous Chicano student  documentarian, writer, producer, and founder of Great Nations Pictures from the South Bay of California. Veliz has been a dedicated student of his family’s and local community’s rich storytelling culture from a young age. In his senior year of high school, he won the California State Championship for… Read more »

Sean-Joseph Takeo Kahāokalani Choo is a queer, multi-ethnic, multi-hyphenate theater artist based in Honolulu. Thru his company, Kamamo House (a queer-centered theatre, new work & artist cultivation/advocacy organization, and podcast), Sean creates space for folks to develop work and create community. Sean has worked with theaters in Hawaiʻi and on Turtle Island. Sean was a… Read more »

Cody Schlegel, born and raised in rural northwest Ohio, embarked on a creative journey that traversed through Michigan and California before finding solace in the picturesque landscapes of East Tennessee. From his formative years, Schlegel was drawn to the art of storytelling, penning tales that ignited his imagination. His passion for writing burgeoned into a… Read more »

Laura Casey is a citizen of the Muscogee Nation and an aspiring screenwriter based in Norman, Oklahoma. A graduate of the University of Oklahoma, her studies focused on academic writing about visual media, with multidisciplinary coursework including Film History, Native American Film, Women and Film, and Oklahoma Filmmakers. While in college, she spent a summer… Read more »

Meet Xavier Rain Tree, a talented videographer and photographer whose passion for storytelling has led to the creation of a remarkable documentary, earning recognition and an award from the city of Fresno. Currently attending Clovis West High School and the Center of Advanced Research and Technology, Xavier is dedicated to their craft and exploring new… Read more »

Tahnabah is a Navajo, Lakota, and Dakota performer who grew up in traditions of the Navajo beauty way of life and blessing way ceremonies as well as the Lakota Sundance and powwows. Tahnabah is a dancer, model, and aspiring actress. The dance styles she performs consist of ballet, lyrical, contemporary, hip hop, color guard, fancy… Read more »

Tristin Calderon has loved acting and singing for most of his life, performing in both school and community theatre productions. He enjoys being on a stage and has been performing for community theatre for several years, where his first show was The Descendants. His list of performances include High School Musical, Into the Woods (Rapunzel’s… Read more »

Sloane Primiano (Choctaw) grew up in Los Angeles, California, and attended high school at Ramon C. Cortines School for Visual and Performing Arts. While there, she won Best Animated Short at the High Schools 2023 Grand Arts Film Festival. Her stop-motion short  film, Kachinas in Space, premiered at the 2023 LA Skins Fest – A… Read more »

Samara Lopez-Jones (she/her), a member of the Choctaw Nation who grew up in the Bay Area, moved to Los Angeles in 2021. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Film, TV, & Media Studies from Cal State LA and has since established herself as an award-winning filmmaker with a talent for both scripted and unscripted work…. Read more »