Content not appropriate for children under 13 years

The Little Sheepherder

Dramatic Short | Sakya Calsoyas

One day out herding, Emerlynn Tso, a 12 year old sheep herder on the Navajo Nation, encounters a group of young boys that do something that enormously upsets her, so she takes action. In doing so she start a feud in their tiny community that plays out in an era where indigenous rights and freedoms were not guaranteed and often illegal, and this feud will need to rely on “the old ways” to bring the story to a happy ending.

TRT: 18 Minutes

Release: October 18, 2021

Sakya Calsoyas (Navajo)

Producer
SAKYA CALSOYAS has been involved in media for many years, beginning with helping aspiring musicians and artists bring their talents to the small screen and online platforms such as YouTube and Vimeo. At one point he was the cofounder of Ambient Lens LLC, a media production company that did business with government and non-profit organizations that needed video or audio services rendered, until he returned to Northern Arizona University (NAU) to finish his Bachelors in Creative Media and Film, during that time he worked as a multimedia journalist with NAZ Today, the only t.v. news broadcast station established and operating in Northern Arizona which is student produced. Recently, Sakya has been an integral part of multiple productions of short films and music videos as a Cinematographer with Deidra Peaches and Paper Rocket Productions and filmmaker Robert Fenske, many of them have been accepted and played at more than a few film festivals. Sakya is currently working on a feature biopic screenplay based on the life of Dr. Carlos Montezuma as well as teaching broadcast journalism part-time at NAU.

Greg Olliver

Producer
Writer, producer, director GREG OLLIVER was born on the high plains of Texas and raised on the mean streets of New York City. From LEMMY, the 2010 acclaimed rock doc about Motörhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister, to the 2021 release of Jack Daniel’s CHASING WHISKEY – Greg has spent a decade crafting honest, compelling stories about iconic musicians, war heroes, major brands and everything in between for feature documentaries, narrative films and short-form branded content work.

Walt Pourier

Vice Chair

Walt is Oglala Lakota and created the logo for Urban Rez. He is Creative Director, owner of Nakota Designs Advertising Designs and Graphics. Executive Director of the Stronghold Society nonprofit dedicated to instilling hope and supporting youth movements through Live Life Call To Action Campaigns.

JORDANA BASS

Project Coordinator​

(Hataža Mani Winga)​

"Cinema Aficionado"

Role: Jordana is excited to engage with different Native/Indigenous communities. Her passion for working with youth will help develop the Native Youth Media Project. She will also assist with the Creative Shorts Fellowship (CSF) to help organize deliverables for filmmakers.