Location: CSWS Lyceum and Courtyard, Free and Open to the Public
Hosted by the Center of Southwest Studies and Reed Library
6:00 PM | CSWS Lyceum – The Making of Navajo Dub Star Wars: A New Hope with Manuelito Wheeler
Ever wonder how a Navajo dub version of Star Wars: A New Hope came to be? Manuelito “Manny” Wheeler (Diné), former director of the Navajo Nation Museum, will share a pre-screening presentation about the creative process and multi-year journey of bringing to life Star Wars: A New Hope (Anaa': Siih Náhásdlii), which is the first major motion picture ever to have been translated into the Navajo language. For 16 years Manny reached out to LucasFilms before finally receiving a response and “green light” in 2012 to move forward with this ambitious project.
Born and raised in the Navajo Nation, Manuelito Wheeler is the former director of the Navajo Nation Museum where he worked with an entirely Indigenous staff to advance innovative exhibitions and projects that influenced and preserved Navajo language and culture. With many years in the museum field, he developed a keen sense of how museums can be more effective as places of understanding and wonder. Beyond the Navajo dub version of Star Wars: A New Hope, past projects of Wheeler’s have included pairing world-renowned artist Ai Weiwei Diné artist Bert Benally to create a site-specific installation in a remote canyon on the Navajo Nation, and working with the National Archives in Washington, DC to bring the Navajo Treaty of 1868 to the Navajo Nation Museum for its momentous 150th anniversary. Wheeler earned a BA in art history from Arizona State University and, in 2013, was appointed by President Biden to the American Indian Arts Board of Trustees.
7:30 PM | CSWS Courtyard
Enjoy a movie night under the stars with the classic hero’s epic of a young farm boy who intercepts a distress call from Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan. This special screening of Star Wars: A New Hope (Sǫʼtah Anaaʼ: Siih Náhásdlįį) has been translated into the Navajo language with English subtitles and features the talents of nearly 70 Diné voice actors. The screening will be held outside in the Center of Southwest Studies courtyard and will start at dark, approximately 7:30 pm. Chairs and popcorn will be provided, or you can bring your own. Extra points if you dress as your favorite character!
Movie-goers will also have the opportunity to stop by the Center of Southwest Studies’ gallery for a final viewing of the critically acclaimed exhibition The Return of the Force, which closes on September 27.