The 2018 Appropriation Award
Indian Horse, by the late Richard Wagamese, is possibly one of the most important books ever penned by an Indigenous author. It’s a lament on the life of Saul Indian Horse, a residential school survivor and promising NHL prospect who threw away his gift for the game on a life of drinking.
It’s a tragic tale, but there’s also beauty and redemption.
Richard always believed there was healing to be had in storytelling. He also looked upon his craft as ceremony. And like his characters, Richard, used the ceremony of storytelling to heal his past trauma.
He told Indigenous stories from an Indigenous perspective but his work transcended race. I remember discussing the book with a non-Indigenous friend who said it helped him heal as a victim of sexual abuse.
In 2013, Indian Horse was a finalist for CBC’s Canada Reads. When I heard it was going to become a movie, I was hopeful – but long before its national release April 13, I knew I wouldn’t be buying a ticket.
Over the summer I watched an extended trailer for the Indian Horse film that had the cinematic grace of a PSA. The dialogue was clunky and forced. The whole scene seemed unauthentic, forced. But beyond the technical awkwardness, there were systemic issues at play.
Over the fall, Indigenous friends gave early reviews from the festival circuit. One saw a screening at the Vancouver International Film Festival in September and said the experience was like being forced to sit through 100 minutes of trauma porn.
Another acquaintance saw the film at the Toronto International Film Festival and was disappointed when, during the question period, the director spoke over the family of the boy whose braids were actually cut off during the filming of a particular scene.
The director isn’t Indigenous, neither is the screenwriter. Sure, there were plenty of Indigenous actors who worked on the film, but with the exception of Paul Devonshire (who was brought on late in the production), not a single Indigenous person worked behind the camera in a creative role.
No Canadian Indigenous director was even contacted to helm the picture.
Why?
“We’re not lacking in talent or ability,” Jesse Wente, head of the newly established Indigenous Screen Office, told the CBC. “We’re lacking in opportunity.”
Could you imagine a world in which a movie like 12 Years a Slave (2013) could have been made without a Black writer or director or producer? What about Schindler’s List without a Jewish director or producers? So why Indian Horse in 2018?
It’s already picked up several awards on the film-fest circuit, but it might as well be the white girl wearing a headdress at the Coachella music festival. It’s the epitome of appropriation: an Indigenous story used to further the careers of non-Indigenous creatives.
The only difference is that they had permission, this time, from the author. Before he passed away in March 2017, Richard Wagamese hand-picked the production team. His reason for going with non-Indigenous creators was that he wanted the movie to be seen by as wide an audience as possible.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy the story of Indian Horse is being told. I hope theatres are filled with people who need to see this movie. None of those audiences, however, will include me.