LA SKINS FEST: Imagining the Indian 
Screening and Q&A with the Filmmakers

ADMISSION:
Admission is free. Reservations required.

RSVP

DESCRIPTION:
“Packs emotion and information.”—The Washington Post

The research is clear: the use of Native American mascots by sports teams and franchises is detrimental, not only to Native people but to marginalized groups everywhere. Imagining the Indian: The Fight Against Native American Mascoting is a comprehensive examination of the movement to eradicate the words, images, and gestures that many Native Americans and their allies find demeaning and offensive. The award-winning documentary, which takes a deep-dive into the issues through archival footage and interviews with those involved in the fight, will be followed by a conversation with filmmaker Ben West (Cheyenne) and Dr. Amy E. West (Cheyenne), film subject and professor at USC Keck and USC Dornsife.

This event is presented in conjunction with the LA SKINS FEST, a film festival that provides opportunities and outlets for Native American filmmakers and offers additional programming to encourage them, including a monthly writers group, monthly directors workshop, and youth multimedia workshops.

 

Bios:

Ben West (co-writer, co-director, producer) is a freelance writer, producer, and filmmaker, and a consultant with the Ciesla Foundation. He spent many years in television production at Carsey-Werner-Mandabach, and has worked on feature films for companies like Mandalay Pictures and Telenova Productions, and outlets such as the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian. He is currently developing content for television and film. In addition to his endeavors in entertainment, he is Cheyenne and an advocate for Native American rights. West was born and raised in Washington, D.C. and is a graduate of the Annenberg School of Communication at USC.

Dr. Amy E West is a Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, Psychology, and Psychiatry & the Behavioral Sciences; Director of the CHLA Child Clinical and Pediatric Psychology Internship; and Associate Training Director for Psychology in the Department of Pediatrics and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and USC Keck School of Medicine. Dr. West is a Board-Certified clinical child and adolescent psychologist with research interests in studying predictors and mechanisms of treatment response in pediatric mood and anxiety disorders, with a particular focus on the application of psychosocial interventions in diverse, underserved populations. Dr. West also has a program of research focused on Indigenous youth mental health; she has partnered with urban and reservation tribal populations across the U.S. to conduct community-based participatory research and intervention development to address mental health disparities in Indigenous children and families. Dr. West is Southern Cheyenne and has 20+ years of experience working in Indigenous communities and as part of national Indigenous networks of scholars focused on promoting the health and well-being of Indigenous youth. She has served in national leadership and advisory positions with respect to Indigenous child development and mental health, including as part of the Tribal Research Council funded by the Administration for Children and Families, American Indian/Alaska Native Research Task Forces at the National Institutes of Health, and the Native Children’s Research Exchange, among others. Dr. West received a B.A. in Psychology from Stanford University, her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Virginia, and completed her pre-doctoral internship and post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School/Children's Hospital Boston.

Related events:

LA SKINS FEST: Native American and Indigenous Short Film Showcase
Monday, September 18, 2023, at 7 p.m. 
Norris Cinema Theatre 
For more info, click HERE. 

LA SKINS FEST: Lakota Nation vs. United States 
Screening and Q&A with the Filmmakers
Monday, October 9, 2023, at 7 p.m.
Norris Cinema Theatre
For more info, click HERE.

Presented by the USC School of Cinematic Arts, Outside the Box (Office), USC Visions and Voices, and the LA SKINS FEST.