Indigenous Actors Roundtable: "Audiences Were Ready to Hear Our Stories Told By Us" (Video)

"I definitely feel that for Indigenous narratives it's been a long time coming," Podemski says. "This slow burn has finally led to a push that has been able to be received in the last few years because of a new awareness about our stories, and our creatives who have been given a chance to write and direct. We were ready for this moment and it happened at a [time] when audiences were ready to hear our stories told by us."

When asked about an early memory of feeling represented, Jeremiah Bitsui shares that he first saw himself reflected in rodeos as a form of entertainment, but a pretty big obstacle led to that dream coming to a quick end: a severe allergy to horses and hay. "Rodeos are a huge sport in all of our communities, but I grew up with allergies, so I wasn't cut out for it," he says. "Allergies and ninjas are what brought me into this business," he laughs, adding that 80s martial arts movies are what drew him into acting. "If I ever got a ninja role, I'd be like a dog who actually caught the car."

Actor and writer Dallas Goldtooth reveals that he was "fangirling" over Jeremiah because of his performance in Breaking Bad and later in the spin-off Better Call Saul, which he describes as "a contemporary example of a Native person in a role that isn't explicitly Native, it's just a role. That character wasn't designed around being Native, and that was really empowering to see. It's rare to see Indigenous people as how we are today or skewed to play into these myths."

"Yes, we still want to tell our community's stories," Podemski adds. "But we also want those moments where a kid might watch and say, 'Oh, that's like my auntie who works at the hospital!' Those roles that are non-specific to our heritage. Look at us aside from our ethnicity and see our potential to being able to tell stories in any context."

Watch the full interview above or listen wherever you download your podcasts, includingiHeartRadio,Apple, GooglePodcasts, Pandora, Stitcher and TuneIn.

Click the social buttons to share this content with your friends and colleagues.

The opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author and/or subject(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillage.com/MyersBizNet, Inc. management or associated writers.