California's American Indian & Indigenous Film Festival

08/08/2026

we are looking forward to season 2!

We're back, baby 😎 CANADA, see you September 8 on APTN and CBC Gem!

And for our fans around the world, stay tuned 👀 Season Two is coming to Netflix later this year…!

07/14/2026

Dr. Joely Proudfit has seen the California Indian Museum and Cultural Center evolve and grow.

She is Payomkawichum. A scholar. A storyteller. And a mother who brought her daughter Piper into a space that was built, deliberately, for people exactly like them.

In the California Indian Dreamin' issue, Dr. Proudfit reflects on what the museum has protected above everything else:

'Dignity. There were years when the dominant narrative about California Indians was one of erasure, as if we were already gone, already history. CIMCC stood in the middle of that and said no. We are here. We are contemporary. Our cultures are living.'

Thirty years of that. In one building. In one community.

Read her full words in the issue.
Free: https://bit.ly/3PepDQb | Print: https://bit.ly/3P6Ysab

07/14/2026

Out today on Netflix!

I served as consulting producer on this film, and it was an honor to help tell the real story of Jim Thorpe, one of the greatest athletes this country has ever known. Directed by Chris Eyre and executive produced by LeBron James and Maverick Carter, this documentary only scratches the surface of his greatness. Jim Thorpe overcame loss, racism, and exploitation to become an Olympic champion, a pro athlete across three sports, and a founder of what became the NFL, and so much more.

Watch today on Netflix.

06/18/2026

This is the California Indian Dreamin' issue.

Three mothers. Three daughters. One 30-year museum. And the women, in all directions, who made all of it possible.

Inside: the wearable art of Shoshoni Hostler, the design sovereignty of Tiffany Wolfe, the fashion comeback of Marcie Bain, the material intelligence of Leah Mata Fragua, and 30 years of resilience and resurgence at the California Indian Museum and Cultural Center.

Written by Nicole Myers-Lim (Pomo/Miwok).
Featuring Dr. Joely Proudfit, CIMCC Board Chair.

This is Native Max's most personal issue to date.

Read it free: https://bit.ly/3PepDQb
Hold it in print: https://bit.ly/3P6Ysab

06/17/2026

Congratulations to my bestie, Tantoo Cardinal, on receiving the Career Achievement Award at the Rockie Awards Gala during the Banff Media Festival. What an extraordinary and well deserved honor for a woman whose work has transformed Indigenous film and storytelling.

She is legend. She is grace. She is beauty. Her work opened doors that generations of Indigenous storytellers now walk through.

Tantoo’s acceptance speech was powerful, moving, and deeply inspiring. What made the evening even more special was seeing the incredibly talented Anna Lambe present the award. Seeing Anna present the award to Tantoo felt like watching generations of Indigenous storytellers embrace one another. The heartfelt way Anna honored Tantoo left many of us emotional.

Tantoo looked stunning in her custom Little Feather design, which beautifully complemented Anna’s gorgeous dress both in shades of purple. Strong hearts beat as one because Tantoo’s elk tooth couture piece perfectly matched my Bethany Yellowtail elk tooth suit.

So many lovely and talented people gathered in one room. It is always wonderful to see Devery Jacobs, whose talent continues to shine.

Congratulations to all of the award recipients. And special thanks to Daschle Priestley (Jason Priestly’s son) for capturing some wonderful photos of us.

Banff, you are stunningly magical and beautiful. My heart is full.

06/17/2026

Dr. Joely Proudfit, CIMCC Board Chair and Payomkawichum scholar, insists that California Indian stories deserve the screen, not just the archive shelf.

'Global audiences are searching for true diversity and authenticity when it comes to American Indian lived experiences. Connecting on this deeper level can only be achieved when Indigenous stories are told by Indigenous creators.'

In our California Indian Dreamin' issue, Dr. Proudfit reflects on her tremendous work, her daughter Piper wearing California Indian couture inside the museum, and what the next 30 years of CIMCC looks like.

Spoiler: they are just getting started.

Read the full story.
Free: https://bit.ly/3PepDQb | Print: https://bit.ly/3P6Ysab

06/04/2026

"This is what dreaming looks like when it has roots."

That's the line that wrote this issue.

Every story inside the California Indian Dreamin' issue, every artist, every museum, every garment, every family, came back to this. What does it mean to dream inside a living inheritance?

📖 Read free → https://bit.ly/3PepDQb
🖨️ Own the print → https://bit.ly/3P6Ysab



Photo: CIMCC Executive Director Nicole Myers-Lim

06/04/2026

Nearly 11,000 people have been disenrolled from 80 different Native American tribes around the country in the last decade-plus.

05/12/2026

05/11/2026