Accolades & Accomplishments

Turtle Island Production's owner and filmmaker James Fortier has presented his work at numerous screenings on university campuses, tribal colleges, and for tribal organizations across the country. James was a guest speaker at SFSU, USF, ASU, Brown University, Syracuse University, University of Minnesota, UIUC, UC Santa Cruz, UC Berkeley, Stanford, KQED Television, and the Banff Television Conference screening his films and discussing aboriginal filmmaking.  His articles and interviews have appeared in several Bay Area and national publications. 

James is a two-time recipient of PBS’s Emerging Filmmaker Fellowships, including the prestigious PBS Producer's Academy Workshop at WGBH in Boston. His work in progress film “American Lynching: Strange and Bitter Fruit” was selected to screen at the prestigious Independent Feature Project No Borders International Showcase in New York in 2003.

Most recently James was selected as the Artist In Residence at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Native American House. There, he taught a four-week filmmaking workshop, screened several of his films and led Q&A afterwards.

James also taught video production workshops for Native American high school students at the 1997 Native American International Film Expo in Santa Fe, NM. 1999, as well as with youth from the Mashantucket Pequot Indian Tribe in 2006, and with First Nations and Métis students at Capilano College, Vancouver, 2004.  In 1998, James volunteered his time working behind the scenes for the American Indian Film Institute in San Francisco, CA. 

Alcatraz Occupation 30th Anniversary Commemoration & Cultural Celebration Event

Turtle Island Production's James Fortier Co-Produced/Co-Directed  this historic event which marked the 30th anniversary of the Indian occupation of Alcatraz Island in 1969-71. The event featured American Indian musicians/performers John Trudell, Ulali, Floyd Redcrow Westerman, Charlie Hill, and more. In the photo at left, John Trudel leads his band Bad Dog along with his long-time collaborator singer/songwriter Jackson Brown.