Studio of the Americas hopes to continue tradition of Native storytelling through film

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The birth of Studio of the Americas, the first full-service Native American-owned film and television studio, is more than 10 years in the making.

A decade ago, a mutual friend introduced Robert Wilson and Clifton Chippewa to each other. Wilson was in the process of trying to produce a film version of his novel, “Crooked Tree.” Since the book dealt heavily with Native American themes, Wilson was looking for Native people to work on the film. Chippewa, a member of the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe of Michigan, fit the bill.

The relationship gave birth to the idea for Studio of the Americas, which officially opened last week. Chippewa and Wilson co-founded the studio, with Chippewa also serving as chairman and Wilson as CEO. The men initially described their idea as “Tyler Perry, but for Native Americans;” fitting then, that the studio is located on the Tyler Perry Studios campus in Atlanta.

“There are thousands and thousands and thousands of stories to be told that have never been told in the Native tradition,” Chippewa said. “To me, Native storytelling is a part of our healing process as well … It’s like medicine for the soul.”

In addition to the studio space from Tyler Perry, Georgia’s production tax incentives and experienced workforce drew Wilson and Chippewa to the state. They’ve also established a partnership with the Georgia Film Academy, launching a production training program specifically for Native American students. When Rough Draft spoke with Wilson and Chippewa, they were on their way to meet with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina to recruit the first group of students for the program.

“The aim of [the academy] is to be able to primarily train Native American students,” Wilson said. “Our goal is to be able to provide life sustaining skills to Native students.”

Wilson said that Studio of the Americas has a slate of 15 projects in development. The two at the forefront right now are an adaptation of Wilson’s book “Crooked Tree,” which he hopes to turn into a multi-film franchise; and “Smoke Alarm,” an anti-smoking documentary that also focuses on the ceremonial origins of tobacco within Native communities.

“[We’re] not only a studio, but we have our own intellectual property that we’re producing and developing,” Wilson said. “We’ll continue that process, and hopefully through the academy … be able to nurture the storytellers of the future.”

Over the past several years, there has been a rise in the number of indigenous stories told in television and movies, from Seminole filmmaker Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi’s television show “Reservation Dogs” to the movie “Fancy Dance,” directed by Native filmmaker Erica Tremblay. Last year, Lily Gladstone became the first Native American to win the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama and the first to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for their work in “Killers of the Flower Moon.”

Chippewa acknowledged that there has been a greater influx of Native stories recently, but said there is still work to be done. He mentioned “Killers of the Flower Moon” specifically, which was directed by non-Native director Martin Scorsese.

“There are [574] federally recognized tribes [in the United States], and each one of them has their own story related to their history and historical trauma throughout hundreds of years,” Chippewa said. “For somebody non-Native telling those stories, it’s not a true version of what really went on. I really would like to see it from a true Native perspective on our side.”

Wilson said that best case scenario, the studio hopes to have a project ready a year from this spring.

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