Content not appropriate for children under 13 years

TwoBears

Dramatic Short | Anthony Florez

TWOBEARS is a story about one man and the struggle he faces as a fighter. Being from the Rez, CASEY TWOBEARS has always had to fight. First, in his home for safety, protecting himself from a drunken abusive Father. Then, from the kids at school picking on him. As a Marine Corps recruit. And finally, against the disease of Alcoholism. Which is where we find TwoBears at the beginning of this film. He is in the early stages of his alcohol recovery and dealing with the inherent burden of not being able to “fight” anymore. He’s a grandfather. He’s come to terms that he needs to be a provider but at the same time, it doesn’t mean he’s free from all the forces that drove his drinking in the first place. He also loves fighting. So he has gotten a job at a local boxing gym. To him, being close to the action is a way of maintaining that spirit, even if he’s not the man in the ring.

TRT: 18 Minutes

Release: December 6, 2021

Anthony Florez (Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe of Northern Nevada)

Producer
Anthony Florez was born and raised in Reno, NV. Inspired by the service of his (late) father, uncles, and grandfather, Anthony became a third-generation serviceman when he graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 2008 and was commissioned as an Ensign in the U.S. Navy. Anthony achieved the rank of Lieutenant and after six years he departed the navy in pursuit of his creative passions as a writer and filmmaker. In 2018, Anthony was one of eight writers selected for the 21st Century Fox Writers Lab and was also awarded the Tisch School of Arts Dean’s Fellowship in television writing to study at New York University’s Graduate Dramatic Writing Program. His short documentary film “Generations” won 2nd place in the Audience Awards Native Doc Competition and was selected to over a dozen film festivals across the United States including LA SkinsFest, ImagiNATIVE (Canada), and the Portland Film Festival. Anthony was most recently a semi-finalist for the Sundance Institute’s 2019 Native Filmmaker Lab Fellowship and is a Staff Writer for the Fox show "Deputy."

Collette Burson

Mentor
Known for her work on Rachel Rising (AMC), Los Espookys (HBO), Hung (HBO), and The Riches (FX). Colette Burson holds an MFA in Dramatic Writing from NYU. She was a founding member of the Playwrights' Collective, a playwright based theater company, for six years in NYC. After moving to Los Angeles in 2009 she created and was the showrunner of the half-hour comedy "Hung" for HBO (2010-2012), which hired more female directors than any other show in cable at that time. Hung has been described as having a mercilessly feminist point of view and was nominated for a Writers' Guild Award for Best New Series as well as four Golden Globes. In 2017 Burson directed the feature film "Permanent" starring Patricia Arquette and Rainn Wilson which was based on her childhood growing up in the south.

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.