Door time: 7:00 PM
Showtime: 7:30 PM
Presented in partnership with:
Say my name and I will live forever….Sheila. Lela. Jocelyn. Abbi. These are the women hidden within the statistics of the Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women (MMIW) epidemic in the U.S. Meet them. See them. Say their names. They are “Who She Is”.By bringing these missing women to life on screen, through animation and first-person storytelling, we learn about their loves and losses and come to know their full life story, not just their tragedies or how they left this earth. Meet them.
Who She Is tells the story of four individual women caught in the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) epidemic. By bringing these missing women to life on screen, through animation and first-person storytelling, the documentary aims to humanize the people behind the statistics. Audiences will learn each woman’s loves and losses and will come to know their story. Through these women, the documentary hopes to shine a light on the wider MMIW epidemic and gendered violence.
Jordan Dresser – Who She Is Co-Director
Jordan Dresser is the Co-Director and Co-Producer of Who She Is. From 2020-2022 he served as the Chairman of the Northern Arapaho Business Council leading Tribal affairs on the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming. Jordan is also a journalist, filmmaker and through the Northern Arapaho Tribal Historic Preservation Office plays a key role in repatriation of Tribal artifacts and ancestral remains.
Jordan has served as an advisor on the Not Invisible Act Commission through the Department of Interior. The Commission has been tasked with addressing the MMIW/P crisis by making recommendations for better coordination across law enforcement and intergovernmental organizations and supporting survivors and families. In September 2022 Jordan was recognized by President Joe Biden for being a “Uniter” at the United We Stand Summit part of the federal initiative to combat hate and extremism in the U.S.
Who She Is is Jordan’s 2nd collaboration with Caldera Productions and his directorial debut.
Sophie Barksdale – Who She Is Co-Director
Sophie Barksdale is the Co-Director and Co-Producer of Who She Is. She has been a producer with Caldera Productions since 2016, having relocated from Australia. During her time with Caldera, Sophie has had a hand in all the Caldera films, including Co-Producing the Heartland EMMY nominee, “The State of Equality” in 2020 and the PBS Independent Lens broadcasted feature, “Home From School: The Children of Carlisle” in 2021. Who She Is is Sophie’s directorial debut and first foray in animated film.
Outside of Caldera Sophie has a deep and abiding passion for social justice and a love of storytelling in all its forms. She is also very active in promoting the arts in her community. She serves on the Board of Directors at the Lander Art Center and is a Co-Founder of The Bossert Collective, a local non-profit that strives to create equity and promote diversity with high quality art in public spaces. Sophie sees Who She Is as a melding of all her passions and is excited to bring her love of different mediums to bear in this production, including elevating marginalized voices, and shining a light on a much needed issue.
Lela C’Hair: WHO SHE IS film participant
Lela C’Hair is a member of the Northern Arapaho Tribe and one of the featured women in the film WHO SHE IS about Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. Lela’s story illustrates the life-long risks that Indigenous women face with higher chances of gendered violence, abuse and human trafficking. Unlike the other stories featured in the film, Lela narrates her own story and bravely faces the camera to offer caution and her hopes for healing and action around the MMIW epidemic. Lela hopes that in sharing her story, she will be able to help others in similar situations.
With support from:
There will not be free shuttle service for this event.