Raven Spirit Dance
Ch'odza
Ch'odza is a Han word that translates into "She is dancing". Ch'odza is a call to the world. In their dancing, these young dancers are a manifestation of Indigenous joy and hope. Their gestures are interwoven with the land and the water that surrounds them indelibly linking them to legacy and matrilineal power they all hold within. It is a reminder to dance with the land, that the world is beautiful and what powerful young Matriarchs we have leading us forward with bravery and grace.
film concept, direction + editing by Jeanette Kotowich
featuring Kimowin Lavallee, Isabel DeRoy-Olson, Amelia DeRoy-Olson + Jeanette Kotowich
song by Moe Clark
produced by Raven Spirit Dance
Originally from Treaty 4 territory Saskatchewan, Jeanette Kotowich creates work that reflects Nêhiyaw/Métis cosmology within the context of contemporary dance, Indigenous performance, and Indigenous futurism. Fusing interdisciplinary collaboration, de-colonial practices and embodied research methodologies, Jeanette’s work references protocol, ritual, relationship to the natural/spirit world and ancestral knowledge. Their practice is intergenerational and vocational; it’s a living and lived experience.
Amelia DeRoy is 14 years old and is a citizen of Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in from the Yukon territory. She also has roots in Ebb and Flow First Nation and Lake Manitoba First Nation in Manitoba. She is a dancer, musician and basketball player.
Isabel DeRoy-Olson is a citizen of Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in from the Yukon territory. She also has roots in Ebb and Flow First Nation and Lake Manitoba First Nation in Manitoba. Isabel is an award-winning film and television actor.
Kimowin Lavalle is from the Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in First Nation and Métis/Cree from Manitoba. She is currently studying at OCAD University in Toronto where she is majoring in Indigenous Visual Culture. Kimowin grew up dancing at Driftwood Dance Academy from 2013 – 2023 and performed with Wagana Youth dancers in Australia and Vancouver. She also recently participated in Canada's National Ballet School LEAD program in August 2024 where she participated and experimented in several dance styles.