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Native America Calling: A John Wayne treasure or disaster?
Friday, March 13, 2026
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The Searchers: Cinematic Treasure or Stereotypical Disaster?
John Ford’s 1956 film “The Searchers” is often lauded as a masterpiece.

It follows Ethan Edwards (John Wayne) as an unapologetically racist ex-Confederate soldier on an obsessive odyssey to find his niece who was kidnapped by Comanches. The question of what he does when he finds her is a central tension of the plot. It was one of the first films added to the National Film Registry and ranks among the greatest films of all time by the American Film Institute.

The Searchers (1956): Official Trailer

But its harmful stereotypes and other obvious drawbacks make it difficult watching for modern, informed audiences. As it marks 70 years since its release, tune in to hear from Native filmmakers and others about the place “The Searchers“ holds in film history.

Also, hear from Nuxalk filmmaker Banchi Hanuse about her documentary film “Ceremony” that premieres this week at the South by Southwest festival in Texas. The documentary examines the cultural role of ooligan fish in Hanuse’s community in Bella Coola, British Columbia, Canada.

Ceremony (2026): Official Trailer

Guests on Native America Calling
Sunrise Tippeconnie (Commanche, Navajo, and Cherokee), director of programming at deadCenter Film and co-host of the “Reel Indigenous” podcast

Julianna Brannum (Comanche), documentary filmmaker

Zacharias Kunuk (Inuit), filmmaker

Banchi Hanuse (Nuxalk), filmmaker, co-founder of Nuxalk Radio, and director of “Ceremony”

Monument Valley
Director John Ford shot many of his films, including “The Searchers” from 1956, in the Monument Valley along the Utah-Arizona state line. Photo: Domenico Convertini

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