Cowboy Smithx (born January 31, 1982) is a

Blackfoot The Blackfoot Confederacy, ''Niitsitapi'', or ''Siksikaitsitapi'' (ᖹᐟᒧᐧᒣᑯ, meaning "the people" or " Blackfoot-speaking real people"), is a historic collective name for linguistically related groups that make up the Blackfoot or Bl ...

filmmaker from the

Piikani Nation The Piikani Nation (, formerly the Peigan Nation) (, ) is a First Nation (or an Indian band as defined by the ''Indian Act''), representing the Indigenous people in Canada known as the Northern Piikani (, ) or simply the Peigan ( or ). Histo ...

and

Kainai Nation The Kainai Nation () (, or , romanized: ''Káínawa'', Blood Tribe) is a First Nations in Canada, First Nations band government in southern Alberta, Canada, with a population of 12,965 members in 2024, up from 11,791 in December 2013. tra ...

in Southern

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

. He has acted in, co-produced, and directed a few short films and music videos. His best known work is a full feature documentary co-produced with Chris Hsiung called, Elder in the Making. It is a film about

reconciliation Reconciliation or reconcile may refer to: Accounting * Reconciliation (accounting) Arts, entertainment, and media Books * Reconciliation (Under the North Star), ''Reconciliation'' (''Under the North Star''), the third volume of the ''Under the ...

between non-Aboriginal and

Aboriginal Peoples in Canada Indigenous peoples in Canada (also known as Aboriginals) are the Indigenous peoples within the boundaries of Canada. They comprise the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis, representing roughly 5.0% of the total Canadian population. There are over ...

Background

In 2008, Cowboy Smithx was employed as a youth worker in East

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. The organization he worked for is KAYA, which stands for the, 'Knowledgeable Aboriginal Youth Association'. Cowboy Smithx is a 2008 graduate from the Indigenous Independent Digital Filmmaking Program at

Capilano University Capilano University (CapU) is a teaching-focused public university based in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, located on the slopes of the North Shore Mountains, with programming that also serves the Sea-to-Sky Corridor and the Sunshi ...

. The film Smithx co-produced, Elder in the Making, will be used as an optional learning resource within Alberta schools to teach and share Indigenous ontological epistemologies. Smithx said today's youth have an opportunity through their use of convenient media opportunities to advocate for change in their communities. Cowboy Smithx recently founded the REDx Speaker Series. This production serves as a platform for reconciliation between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Peoples Smithx is the main stakeholder of his motion picture and film company, Eccentricus Imagery, which has been based in Vancouver B.C. since 2005.

Film work

*October 2016:

Cree The Cree, or nehinaw (, ), are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, North American Indigenous people, numbering more than 350,000 in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations in Canada, First Nations. They live prim ...

Code Talker, co-produced by Alexandra Lazarowich & Cowboy Smithx. *September 2016: Elder in the Making, co-produced by Chris Hsiung & Cowboy Smithx. *2013: Music Video-Dancin' on the Run, produced by Cowboy Smithx. *2013: Music Video-Red Winter, co-produced by Cowboy Smithx. *November 2011: Music Video-2 Hour Parking, directed by Cowboy Smithx. *July 2011: Bloodland (a short experimental film produced by

Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers Elle-Máijá Apiniskim Tailfeathers (born in 1986) is a Canadian filmmaker, actor, and producer. She has won several accolades for her film work, including multiple Canadian Screen Awards. Born in Cardston, Alberta, Tailfeathers began acting i ...

), acting role by Cowboy Smithx. *September 2005: Crookz, acting role by Cowboy Smithx

Awards

*March 2020: Cowboy Smithx awarded an Indspire Award for Arts. Revoked due to "personal and professional conduct that are a significant departure from generally accepted standards of public behaviour" *April 2017: Cowboy Smithx and co-producer Alexandra Lazarowich of,' Cree Code Talker,' are nominees for best short non-fiction film at the 2017 Alberta Film and Television Awards. *May 2016: Elder in the Making receives an award from the, Alberta Film & Television Awards and Alberta Media Production Industries Association, for best documentary over 30 minutes *April 2016: Cowboy Smithx and fellow co-producer, Alexandra Lazarowich, win first place at the HotDocs Bravo Factual Short Film Pitching Competition. They use this monetary award to finance the, 'Cree Code Talker,' short film

References

External links

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...

on RedxTalks 1982 births Living people First Nations filmmakers {{improve categories, date=November 2022 Capilano University alumni Kainai Nation people Piikani Nation people