We want to tell our own stories

We want to tell our own stories

In 2005, I directed and produced the film “The careerwoman from the tundra” about a Sami reindeer herder woman from Kautokeino, Northern Norway. It was sent on NRK, the national public broadcaster. In 2007, the International Sami Film Institute was established, and the leader proclaimed, “we want to tell our own stories”. She addressed the importance of indigenous filmmakers who can tell stories on their own terms. In 2015, I wrote the article “In front of and behind the camera. Media images from Northern Norway”, where I used my own dual experience as a interviewee and journalist to discuss stereotypical images of the Sami people.

I want to address the us/them dichotomy and discuss who should be allowed to tell stories about the Samis. I discuss it in a Norwegian/Sami perspective where I use my own experiences as a Norwegian filmmaker, based in a Sami speaking area, but also in a Sami/Sami perspective. Based on auto-ethnography, representations and essentialism, I argue that the “we” category carries a risk of essentialism and it is important to address that the “we” category does not necessarily include all the Sami, because the ISFI does not accept projects that are not framed in a Sami language. As such, the application guidelines resemblance the Norwegian Film Institute’s guidelines, which emphasize the Norwegian language. However, not all of the Sami people speak Sami due to colonial processes in Northern Norway. I also discuss how institutional framework, such as the guidelines of Northern Norway Film Centre, ISFI, and public broadcaster NRK, affect content