Phil Lucas
Encyclopedia
Phil Lucas was an American filmmaker of mostly Native American
themes. He acted, wrote, produced, directed or edited more than 100 films/documentaries or television programs starting as early as 1979 when he wrote/co-produced and co-directed Images of Indians for PBS - a five-part series exploring the problem of Indian stereotypes as portrayed and perpetuated by Hollywood Westerns.
, Arizona
, United States
to the Choctaw
Native American Nation, by his twenties Lucas was a musician in New York but giving up alcohol drove him to leave for Central America
where he took up photography and work for advertising agencies. About 1969 Lucas also became a member of the Bahá'í Faith
and contributed a song Mount Your Steeds, O Heroes of God! among other songs on an LP record re-released as a CD Fire & Snow. He also spoke at least one Bahá'í Conference (see links below). Lucas returned to the American West and took up filmmaking after surviving the 1972 earthquake
in Managua
, Nicaragua
.
, Lucas won some 18 awards or nominations from 1980 to 2003.
As recently as 2003 Lucas won the CINE Eagle Award for Vis à Vis: Native Tongues.
(1990–1991) and MacGyver
, as well as producing/writing/directing/editing many movies and documentaries. In 1987 he directed Honor of All about an Alkali Lake band of Indians in British Columbia who overcame decades of alcohol abuse. Lucas co-directed the 1993 American Indian Dance Theatre
for PBS television series Great Performances
/Dance in America. Also in 1993, Pierce Brosnan
starred in The Broken Chain for TV and Lucas played a Mohawk character in a story about Iroquois' in the midst of the Revolutionary War. Again in 1993 Lucas produced, directed and wrote Healing the Nation a documentary on efforts of Nuu Chan-NuIth Nation on Vancouver Island
to break the cycle of sexual abuse in their community. In 2003 in Vis à Vis: Native Tongues Lucas brought together an Australian Aboriginal
artist and an American Indian performance artist.
, and taught film at Bellevue Community College
in Washington for the last eight years of his life. He began an American Indian Film Festival there in 2003. He died in Bellevue
, Washington, and is survived by his wife, Mary Lou, and five children.
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
themes. He acted, wrote, produced, directed or edited more than 100 films/documentaries or television programs starting as early as 1979 when he wrote/co-produced and co-directed Images of Indians for PBS - a five-part series exploring the problem of Indian stereotypes as portrayed and perpetuated by Hollywood Westerns.
Early life
Born in 1942 in PhoenixPhoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to the Choctaw
Choctaw
The Choctaw are a Native American people originally from the Southeastern United States...
Native American Nation, by his twenties Lucas was a musician in New York but giving up alcohol drove him to leave for Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
where he took up photography and work for advertising agencies. About 1969 Lucas also became a member of the Bahá'í Faith
Bahá'í Faith
The Bahá'í Faith is a monotheistic religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind. There are an estimated five to six million Bahá'ís around the world in more than 200 countries and territories....
and contributed a song Mount Your Steeds, O Heroes of God! among other songs on an LP record re-released as a CD Fire & Snow. He also spoke at least one Bahá'í Conference (see links below). Lucas returned to the American West and took up filmmaking after surviving the 1972 earthquake
1972 Nicaragua earthquake
The 1972 Nicaragua earthquake was an earthquake that occurred at 12:29 a.m. local time on Saturday, December 23, 1972 near Managua, the capital of Nicaragua. It had a magnitude of 6.2 and occurred at a depth of about 5 kilometers beneath the centre of the city. Within an hour after the main...
in Managua
Managua
Managua is the capital city of Nicaragua as well as the department and municipality by the same name. It is the largest city in Nicaragua in terms of population and geographic size. Located on the southwestern shore of Lake Xolotlán or Lake Managua, the city was declared the national capital in...
, Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
.
Awards
Acclaimed as the "foremost (Native American) film documentarian" by Hanay Geiogamah, a professor of theater and American Indian studies at the University of California, Los AngelesUniversity of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
, Lucas won some 18 awards or nominations from 1980 to 2003.
- 1994 The Native AmericansThe Native AmericansThe Native Americans is a three-part American television documentary miniseries that premiered on TBS on October 10, 1994. The remaining two episodes aired on October 11 and 13, 1994...
, Emmy AwardEmmy AwardAn Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
, Television Series - 1999 Allan HouserAllan HouserAllan Capron Houser or Haozous a Chiricahua Apache sculptor from Oklahoma. He was one of the most renowned Native American painters and Modernist sculptors of the 20th century....
/Haozous: The Lifetime Works of an American Master- Best Documentary, Santa Fe Film FestivalSanta Fe Film FestivalThe Santa Fe Film Festival is a Non-Profit Organization which presents important world cinema in a non-commercial context that represents aesthetic, critical and entertainment standards highlighting New Mexican film, new American and foreign film including revivals, retrospectives, independent...
, Santa Fe, NM. - Taos Mountain Award, Taos Talking Pictures Film FestivalTaos Talking Pictures Film FestivalThe Taos Talking Pictures Film Festival ran from 1994 to 2003 with a peak budget of $750,000 in 2002 and attracted Hollywood stars like Elizabeth Taylor, James Coburn and Julia Roberts....
, Taos, NM. - Official Selection, Native Forum, Sundance Film FestivalSundance Film FestivalThe Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
.
- Best Documentary, Santa Fe Film Festival
- 2002 Restoring the Sacred Circle won the Best Public Service Award at American Indian Film Festival in San Francisco.
As recently as 2003 Lucas won the CINE Eagle Award for Vis à Vis: Native Tongues.
Films/television
Lucas worked on popular media as well as covering issues inside the Native American community. Lucas played characters and served as a technical advisor on cultural content in popular TV series Northern ExposureNorthern Exposure
Northern Exposure is an American television series that ran on CBS from 1990 to 1995, with a total of 110 episodes.-Overview:The series was given a pair of consecutive Peabody Awards: in 1991–92 for the show's "depict[ion] in a comedic and often poetic way, [of] the cultural clash between a...
(1990–1991) and MacGyver
MacGyver
MacGyver is an American action-adventure television series created by Lee David Zlotoff. Henry Winkler and John Rich were the executive producers. The show ran for seven seasons on ABC in the United States and various other networks abroad from 1985 to 1992. The series was filmed in Los Angeles...
, as well as producing/writing/directing/editing many movies and documentaries. In 1987 he directed Honor of All about an Alkali Lake band of Indians in British Columbia who overcame decades of alcohol abuse. Lucas co-directed the 1993 American Indian Dance Theatre
American Indian Dance Theatre
American Indian Dance Theatre is a professional performing arts company presenting the dances and songs of Native Americans in the United States and the First Nations of Canada...
for PBS television series Great Performances
Great Performances
Great Performances, a television series devoted to the performing arts, has been telecast on Public Broadcasting Service public television since 1972...
/Dance in America. Also in 1993, Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
starred in The Broken Chain for TV and Lucas played a Mohawk character in a story about Iroquois' in the midst of the Revolutionary War. Again in 1993 Lucas produced, directed and wrote Healing the Nation a documentary on efforts of Nuu Chan-NuIth Nation on Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...
to break the cycle of sexual abuse in their community. In 2003 in Vis à Vis: Native Tongues Lucas brought together an Australian Aboriginal
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
artist and an American Indian performance artist.
Later life
Lucas eventually moved to Issaquah, WashingtonIssaquah, Washington
Issaquah is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 30,434 at the 2010 census.Based on per capita income, Issaquah ranks 25th of 522 areas in the State of Washington to be ranked....
, and taught film at Bellevue Community College
Bellevue Community College
Bellevue College is a public institution of higher education located in Bellevue, Washington, a suburb of Seattle. It serves 35,000 students per year, making it the second largest institution of higher education overall in Washington state...
in Washington for the last eight years of his life. He began an American Indian Film Festival there in 2003. He died in Bellevue
Bellevue, Washington
Bellevue is a city in the Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, across Lake Washington from Seattle. Long known as a suburb or satellite city of Seattle, it is now categorized as an edge city or a boomburb. The population was 122,363 at the 2010 census.Downtown Bellevue is...
, Washington, and is survived by his wife, Mary Lou, and five children.
External links
- A talk he gave taped at the 1990 Greenlake Wisconsin Bahá'í Conference.
- Internet Movie Database Entry
- Obituary - Phil Lucas' films told real stories of Native people By Ashley Bach, Seattle Times Eastside bureau
- Phil Lucas, 1942-2007: Native American 'a teacher in his films and classroom' By Christine Frey, Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
- Phil Lucas Filmmaker and Founder American Indian Film Festival
- Phil Lucas National Museum of the American Indian
- News and Comment, Native filmmaker passes on at age 65 by Tehaliwaskenhas, Bob Kennedy, Oneida, Turtle Island Native Network