Older than America to premiere

Cree Indian Director Georgina Lightning's feature film debut OLDER THAN AMERICA to premiere in competition at the 2008 South by Southwest Film Festival“Older Than America,” starring Golden Globe nominee Adam Beach, Bradley Cooper, Tantoo Cardinal, Georgina Lightning and Wes Studi has been selected as one of eight feature films to compete at the 2008 South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas (March 7-15, 2008).

“Older Than America” synopsis: A woman’s haunting visions reveal a Catholic priest’s sinister plot to silence her mother from speaking the truth about atrocities that occurred at a Native Indian boarding school. A supernatural thriller with cultural content, “Older Than America” speaks to the lasting impact of the cultural genocide that occurred at such schools throughout the United States and Canada.

Director Georgina Lightning says, “’Older Than America’ is dedicated to my father, George De Jong, who, after years of battling the demons of his boarding school experience, committed suicide. As a means of making sense of the tragedy, I was compelled to learn more about my father’s boarding school experiences and then bring those stories to the screen. But ‘Older Than America’ is not just an indictment of the past. The title refers to who we were as a nation before mandatory assimilation transformed our identity. And it refers to the history and traditions that will empower us to heal and move on.”Comment:  For more on Native-themed movies, see The Best Indian Movies.