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Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers (Blackfoot/Sámi) of Vancouver, B.C. has been named the 2018 recipient of the Sundance Institute Merata Mita Fellowship. The fellowship is named in honor of the late M?ori filmmaker Merata Mita (1942-2010).
Tailfeathers has a bachelor's degree from the University of British Columbia in First Nations and Indigenous Studies with a Minor in Women's and Gender Studies. Her award-winning works are often community-focused and rooted in social justice.
She is currently directing a feature-length documentary about the opiate crisis and addiction in her home community of Kainai First Nation (Blood Reserve) in Alberta.
Each year, for the past three years, Sundance Institute has named an Indigenous filmmaker to receive a cash grant and a year’s worth of support and activities, including a trip to the Sundance Film Festival, access to strategic and creative services, artist programs, and mentorship opportunities.
Founded in 1981 by Robert Redford, Sundance Institute is a non-profit organization that “provides and preserves the space for artists in film, theatre, and new media to create and thrive.”
Tailfeathers is a recipient of the Vancouver Mayor's Arts Award and a Kodak Image Award for her work as an emerging filmmaker and a Canadian Screen Award for her performance in On the Farm. Her short documentary, Bihttoš (2014) was included in the TIFF Top Ten Canadian Shorts and was also nominated for a Canadian Screen Award and a Leo Award for Best Short Documentary.
Bihttoš also won the grand jury prize at the Seattle International Film Festival for Best Short Documentary. Most recently, she directed a feature-length documentary, cesna?em: the city before the city—in collaboration with the Musqueam First Nation—which premiered at the 2017 Vancouver International Film Festival.
Tailfeathers is an alumna of the Berlinale Talent Lab, the Sámi Film Institute's Indigenous Film Fellowship, and a recipient of the Hot Docs Cross Currents Fund.
"The Merata Mita Fellowship reflects Sundance Institute's ongoing commitment to supporting Indigenous artists globally. The selection of Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers as the 2018 recipient exemplifies the creative work and the efforts that Merata championed throughout her life," said N. Bird Runningwater (Cheyenne/Mescalero Apache), director, Sundance Institute Native American and Indigenous Film Program.
Merata Mita (Ngai te Rangi/Ngati Pikiao) was New Zealand's first Indigenous female filmmaker.