Georgina Lightning is a

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

film director, screenwriter, and actress.

Biography

Born in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, she is an enrolled member of the Samson Cree Nation. She was raised off-reserve, near the

Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...

community in Edmonton, Alberta. In 2007, she was featured in ''

Filmmaker Magazine ''Filmmaker'' is a quarterly publication magazine covering issues relating to independent film. The magazine was founded in 1992 by Karol Martesko-Fenster, Scott Macaulay and Holly Willis. The magazine is now published by the IFP (Independent F ...

'' as one of 25 New Faces of Independent Film. In 2010 she was the recipient of the "White House Project- Epic-Award for Emerging Artist". Notice of Lightning's award ceremony where she received the White House Award for Emerging Artist. She co-founded Tribal Alliance Productions, partnering with executive producer Audrey Martinez, as a means to create opportunities for Native American,

, and other

Indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

filmmakers. Press release regarding Debut of "Older than America" film. In 2008, Lightning directed, wrote, and starred in the supernatural thriller film '' Older Than America'', becoming the first North American Indigenous Woman to direct a major feature film. Interview with Lightning. The film won several major awards at film festivals. She based the film on her father's experience with the

Canadian Indian residential school system In Canada, the Indian residential school system was a network of boarding schools for Indigenous peoples. The network was funded by the Canadian government's Department of Indian Affairs and administered by Christian churches. The school s ...

and other personal family stories. Lightning is an outspoken advocate for First Nations and Native American causes, working towards a greater appreciation and awareness of the intrinsic value of North American Indigenous cultures to not only Indigenous people themselves, but to society in general. Lighting on the value of gaming revenues for Native Americans, and also on the many troubles experienced by Native Americans during the westward expansion of American society. (Referenced article at page's midpoint.) Her three children are either currently or previously working actors. They are

Crystle Lightning Crystle Lea Lightning (born February 5, 1981) is a Canadian-American film actress, musician, DJ, and hip-hop MC. Early life Lightning holds dual citizenship with the United States and Canada. She is the daughter of director and actress Georgina ...

, Cody Lightning, and William Lightning. At the

9th Canadian Screen Awards The 9th annual Canadian Screen Awards were held in the week of May 17 to 20, 2021, to honour achievements in Canadian film, television, and digital media production in 2020.Barry Hertz, "How one Canadian arts institution is rebuilding amid the p ...

in 2021, she received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her performance in ''

Trickster In mythology and the study of folklore and religion, a trickster is a character in a story ( god, goddess, spirit, human or anthropomorphisation) who exhibits a great degree of intellect or secret knowledge and uses it to play tricks or otherwi ...

''.Brent Furdyk
"Television Nominees Announced For 2021 Canadian Screen Awards, ‘Schitt’s Creek’ Leads The Pack With 21 Nominations"
''

ET Canada ''ET Canada'' (previously referred to as ''Entertainment Tonight Canada'') is a Canadian entertainment news television series, using the same format as the American entertainment newsmagazine '' Entertainment Tonight''. ''ET Canada'' is a broadca ...

'', March 30, 2021.

Filmography

* '' Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child'' (1995 as Morning Dove) * ''Yellow Wooden Ring'' (1998 as Sissy Blea) * '' Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World'' (1998 as an "additional voice") * ''My Brother'' (1999 as Mother) * ''

Walker, Texas Ranger ''Walker, Texas Ranger'' is an American action crime television series created by Leslie Greif and Paul Haggis. It was inspired by the film '' Lone Wolf McQuade'', with both this series and that film starring Chuck Norris as a member of the ...

'' (TV, 1998-1999, two episodes, in Way of the Warrior as Sundance, and War Cry as Ellen Crow Feather) * ''Backroads'' (2000 as Mary Lou) * '' Johnny Greyeyes'' (2000 as Georgina) * '' Christmas in the Clouds'' (2001 as Louise) * ''Cowboy Up'' (2001 as Brenda) * ''

The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White Hous ...

'' (TV, 2001, as Maggie Morningstar Charles in the episode The Indians in the Lobby) * ''

Auf Wiedersehen, Pet ''Auf Wiedersehen, Pet'' () is a British comedy-drama television programme about seven British construction workers who leave the United Kingdom to search for employment overseas. In the first series, the men live and work on a building site in ...

'' (TV, 2002, as Lainie Proudfoot in four episodes: An Inspector Calls, Another Country, A Bridge too Far, and Bridge Over Troubled Water) * ''

Dreamkeeper ''Dreamkeeper'' is a 2003 film written by John Fusco and directed by Steve Barron. The main plot of the film is the conflict between a Lakota elder and storyteller named Pete Chasing Horse (August Schellenberg) and his Lakota grandson, Shane Chas ...

'' (TV, 2003 as Crystal Heart, also as associate producer) * ''Sawtooth'' (2004 as Lucy, also as executive producer and producer) * ''Hanbleceya'' (2005 as co-producer) * ''Ghosts of the Heartland'' (2007 as Tani) * '' Older Than America'' (2008 as director, writer, and as lead actress portraying the character Rain) * '' Blackstone'' (TV series, 2011, as Tracy Bull in the first season) * ''

'' (TV series, 2020) * ''Pipe Nation'' (Canadian TV series, 2021)

References

External links

Georgina Lightning
- Official Website * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lightning, Georgina First Nations dramatists and playwrights Canadian women dramatists and playwrights Cree people Living people First Nations filmmakers Canadian women film directors Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Canadian women writers Film directors from Edmonton First Nations women writers Writers from Edmonton 21st-century First Nations writers