Hidden Wounds

If you are in tune with the vibe of our nation right now, you can sense a shift of consciousness. This shift comes with messages of hope and alliance, attractive notions to many of us. However, this change can't happen if healing and forgiveness of our wounds does not occur.

Georgina Lightning, actor and now director, is heeding the call to do her part in the healing of America. In her new movie, "Older Than America," she is bringing to the surface a forgotten wound many of us don’t even know about. It occurred during the cultural genocide of the American Indian, where young, Indian children were taken from their homes and families and moved into boarding schools, where they could be “white-washed,” living in a culture where “Kill the Indian, save the man” was the running theme.

Through the character of Rain, played by Lightning, an Indian woman who experiences visions from the past, we catch glimpses of the atrocities, which occurred at these boarding schools, and the ramifications they still hold for those who were there and the culture as a whole. Lightning knows the ramifications firsthand. She was born into a family of survivors of these schools, including her father, businessman and Cree Indian George De Jong, who was institutionalized from age 6-18 and committed suicide when Lightning was 18. 

Lightning’s intentions for her movie are clear: For both Indian and white culture to acknowledge what was done in the past, so healing can take place for themselves and each other. This healing is necessary for the Indians of yesterday and the children of today to return to their traditions and ceremonies, which are "Older Than America".

This healing process has already begun. The Prime Minister of Canada issued a public apology to the world for what occurred in the boarding schools, and as the film tours various film festivals, it closes with standing ovations and people telling Lightning their own stories of hardship and gratitude for her efforts in sharing this tragedy.

The movie took three years to make and it's constantly evolving. The movie continues to tour film festivals, picking up awards along the way, including "best director". Lightning is a woman with vision and purpose. Filmmaker magazine has named her one of 25 new faces in independent film and she intends to open up the doors for women, minority women in particular.

Lightning was born in Canada. When she was 10-years-old, she saw her father stirred, while watching television and understood, at a level she couldn't explain, the power of film and how it can touch people. She moved to Los Angeles to receive training and pursue a career in acting. Frustrated with the lack of roles and opportunities for Indians, she wanted to do something different. She became an acting coach, working on various sets. While doing so, she watched the producers and directors, saying to herself, “I can do this.”

Lightning is also a dedicated mother of three children: Cody, Crystle and William, all artists forging forward in their purpose, just like their mother. She is a defiant woman to watch. Lightning believes in the power of media, a woman who will always convey resonant messages with her work.

In December, Lightning will be leaving snowy Minnesota ,where she has been for the past 18 months, filming "Older Than America" on the Fond-du-Lac Indian reservation, and return to sunny California. There will be a screening of her movie on February 5, 2009 at Augsburg College, and there are plans for a regional theatrical release, DVD release and, perhaps, a television opportunity. The film is 103 minutes.

For information about her production company visit: http://www.TribalAllianceProductions.com/.