I’m going to make this brief. Avatar has made over 5 billion dollars worldwide in gross profits, after just two of its…five movies? I’m not even sure how many there are planned at this point. And I’m not going to rehash all of the old points about how Avatar is appropriative or cringe or whatever. That’s been done to death and you can read about it elsewhere.
However, I’ve noticed that when WorldCon asked a few of us Native creatives to contribute to crafting an Indigenous Futurism exhibit for the 2025 Seattle WorldCon event, many of us couldn’t afford airfare, hotels, booth fees, or gas money. And there was no offer of an honorarium. Sure, there were some offers of ‘assistance’, but what should have happened is that the Natives on the ground, doing the important work of Indigenous Futurism, should have had no problem getting to a convention. They should have been able to walk away from the event with more money than they started with. This isn’t a unique situation. It’s what many of us deal with constantly – the battle between paying our basic bills and trying to share our artistic visions.
James Cameron and his production company, Lightstorm, set up a non-profit called the Avatar Alliance. That organization has funneled a few dollars toward environmental charities. But I think it’s time that he acknowledges that Avatar not only relies heavily on Native cultures and concepts, but that his films take up space in an already crowded media market that could be highlighting Native visions of the future. It’s not too much to ask that they set aside some of their net profits from this next Avatar film to help ensure Indigenous creators have a chance to see their projects come to light.
So, I’ve created this petition in the hopes of starting a dialogue with Lightstorm and the folks at the Avatar Alliance. There are amazing Indigenous futurists out there doing incredible work. So much of it could be funded, highlighted, and encouraged with what amounts to the same amount Lightstorm probably spends on a few second of VFX.
Please, sign the petition. Share it on your social media.
** I also want to be very clear. The success of this petition may benefit me directly or indirectly. However, I’m leaving my own company off of the petition and not including any links back to my company. I do not want anyone mistaking this effort as an ask for funding for Coyote & Crow Games. That is *not* why I am sponsoring this petition.
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