TULSA, Okla. — Cherokee Nation recently launched the world’s first and only tribally operated education and workforce development center focused specifically on helping Native Americans join the entertainment industry.
Under the Cherokee Film Institute, the tribe and its businesses are investing in a long-term strategy to create educational and career opportunities aimed at removing barriers for Native Americans to enter the film and media industry while creating a sustainable workforce in and around its tribal reservation. The institute’s first courses are set to begin in January 2025.
“We continue to illustrate that Native stories are best told by those with authentic perspectives. Empowering a talented Native workforce is essential to ensuring Native Americans are seen, heard and respected within this growing industry,” said Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. “This is more than a place of learning; it is a place of empowerment and a solution to a problem. Native misrepresentation stops here.”
Developed in partnership with the same team that built the highly successful Georgia Film Academy, CFI is an industry standard certification program, focusing on craft development, hands-on training and mentorship opportunities that prepare participants to enter the rapidly growing film industry in Cherokee Nation and beyond. CFI provides an affordable, flexible plan of study for adult learners by partnering with other industry and educational stakeholders in developing its top-quality educational programming.
In its purpose to train, develop and elevate Native and local talent to work professionally in film and media and create sustainable career opportunities for Oklahomans, CFI programming is open to anyone 18 and older interested in gaining the skills and training needed to join the entertainment industry. Native American applicants will be able to apply for a tuition waiver to remove barriers for entry into the industry. In addition, CFI’s mandatory Intro to Industry course will include a primer on best practices when filming in Indian Country.
“As the industry continues to grow in and around the Cherokee Nation Reservation, we need more people to be trained to work on film sets, so we are stepping in to make that happen,” said Jennifer Loren, senior director of Cherokee Film. “There’s a job for everyone in film, and we are excited to help people find their place and a sustainable career while empowering our people to tell more of our stories.”
The Cherokee Film Institute Advisory Board, which is comprised of industry professionals, educators, subject matter experts and tribal citizens, provides invaluable advice stemming from decades of experience among its members while helping develop the curriculum, workshops, traineeship opportunities and other elements of the Cherokee Film Institute. Wes Studi, Amber Valletta, Brad Carson, Faith Philips, Meagan Ferguson, Laura King, Sunrise Tippeconnie and Tony Heaberlin currently serve as members of the inaugural CFI Advisory Board.
CFI is part of the Cherokee Film ecosystem, based in the Cherokee Nation Reservation in Oklahoma. Cherokee Film includes four distinct branches — Cherokee Film Productions, Cherokee Film Studios, Cherokee Film Commission and Cherokee Film Institute — all working toward a shared goal of innovating narrative sovereignty while creating economic development within the tribe’s reservation.
Cherokee Film is owned by Cherokee Nation Businesses, the economic engine of the largest Native American tribe in the U.S. The tribally owned holding company remains a driver of community development, economic impact and cultural preservation, as well as a staple in the hospitality industry and leader in federal contracting solutions.
To learn more about the Cherokee Film Institute, please visit cherokeefilminstitute.com.