#Jon Proudstar

[abs0luteb4stard]

W A T C H I N G

Francis is a 115-year-old Yiddish vampire who still looks 35. He's been roaming the American backroads in his beat-up muscle car for decades, keeping to himself and liking it that way. One day, he meets a feisty teenager who claims she's his daughter, and she has the fangs to prove it. They soon go on the road, deciding whether to sink their teeth into family life.

Written, Produced, Directed, Acted by Noah Segan

[mannytoodope]

Leon: What is that?

Willie Jack: My war paint.

Leon: Where'd you get it? Willie Jack: Halloween store.

-Leon: Let me see it. -Wille Jack: It's for good luck.

Leon: Did you see all the chemicals on this label? You shouldn't put that on your face. Probably get some kind of face tumor from it.

Willie Jack: What's a face tumor? -Leon: You know, if you can't pronounce the names of the chemicals on the label...

[letterboxd-loggd]

The Last Stop in Yuma County (2023) Francis Galluppi

May 18th 2024

[dare-g]

Saw Graham Greene and Jon Proudstar talk at the film fest today! They were both funny and insightful with plenty of experience to share it was great to listen to.

[moviemosaics]

The Last Stop in Yuma County

directed by Francis Galluppi, 2023

[stuff-diary]

Reservation Dogs (Final season)

TV Shows/Dramas watched in 2023

Reservation Dogs (Final season, 2023, USA)

Creators: Sterlin Harjo & Taika Waititi

Mini-review:

I'm really sad to see Reservation Dogs go. I feel like it could have run for much longer, as it has so many fun and interesting characters, but at the same time I understand that there would never be a better moment to wrap it up. Regardless of that, I love that the show kept its focus on friendship, family and community to the very end. They really made the most of its superbly charming ensemble, making sure everyone got their moment to shine. This was probably the most serious season out of the three (which makes sense), but it never loses that quirky comedic spark. Anyway, this show was groundbreaking in terms of representing modern Native culture in mainstream TV, and I hope it has opened the door for more similar projects.

[swampflix]

Last Stop in Yuma County (2024)

Heretofore a director of mostly short films and music videos, first-time feature director Francis Galluppi has burst onto the scene with something that’s both indebted to indie upstarts of the past and which feels like a breath of fresh air. Last Stop in Yuma County is a spare movie; it doesn’t look or feel cheap although you can definitely tell it was made on a marginal budget. It’s lean in just…

[taekwondolifemagazine]

THE LAST STOP IN YUMA COUNTY Is One of The Best Films of The Year

June 20, 2024 (New York, NY)– THE LAST STOP IN YUMA COUNTY Is One of The Best Films of The Year.  Director,Francis Gallupi, masterfully tells the story of a depressed knife salesman who ends up in the midst of a modern Neo-western tale.  This Well Go USA release hits broad release on July 16, 2024. Synopsis: While awaiting the next fuel truck at a middle-of-nowhere Arizona rest stop, a traveling…

[onenakedfarmer]

Currently Watching

THE LAST STOP IN YUMA COUNTY Francis Galluppi USA, 2023

[brokehorrorfan]

The Last Stop in Yuma County will be released on Blu-ray on July 16 via Well Go USA. Currently available on VOD, the 2023 crime thriller marks the feature debut of writer-director Francis Galluppi.

Jim Cummings, Jocelin Donahue, Sierra McCormick, Nicholas Logan, Michael Abbott Jr., Connor Paolo, Alex Essoe, Robin Bartlett, Jon Proudstar, Sam Huntington, Ryan Masson, Barbara Crampton, Gene Jones, Faizon Love, and Richard Brake star.

Read on for the trailer and special features.

Special features:

Audio commentary by director Francis Galluppi, actors Jim Cummings and Jocelin Donahue, executive producer James Claeys, and director of photography Mac Fisken

Making-of featurette

Trailer

While awaiting the next fuel truck at a middle-of-nowhere Arizona rest stop, a traveling young knife salesman is thrust into a high-stakes hostage situation by the arrival of two similarly stranded bank robbers with no qualms about using cruelty-or cold, hard steel-to protect their bloodstained, ill-begotten fortune.

Pre-order The Last Stop in Yuma County.

[plugoarts]

Beginning at 10:00 am Live! Wednesday February 15th 2023 On Kickstart.aTigersTale.com THE COMICS FU SHOW is proud to present the return of Tribal Force comics’ first All Native American Super Hero Team! Originally created in 1996 by writer Jon Proudstar (@jonproudstar), in 2014 Tribal Force would be recognized by the Smithsonian Institute as “the first all native american super hero team.” Since than, MACHINE Comix has been working incredibly hard on long awaited TRIBAL FORCE Kickstarter Campaign and they’ll be launching live with us. @machine_comix #kickstarter #livelaunch #thecomicsfushow #linkinbio #reservationdogs #interview https://www.instagram.com/p/CosDYCdLwzr/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[secretsocietyxmen]

My dream is to someday own both issues of Tribal Force. The first Native American focused comic, that's unbearably difficult to come by. I want it.

It's also my main inspiration for wanting to write Native superheroes. No one else seems to want to, which is a shame.

[loveboatinsanity]

[dovebuffy92]

Willie Jack (Pauline Alexis) and her father Leon (Jon Proudstar) fully grief for her cousin Daniel (Dalton Cramer)

Spoilers Below

In Reservation Dogs Season One Episode Six,” Hunting,” directed by Sterlin Harjo, Willie Jack and her father Leon hunt for an elusive buck (male deer) named “Chunk” and come to peace with Daniel’s death. ” Hunting” is an intimate episode that explores the father-daughter relationship dynamic between these two characters. For the most part, the episode takes place in the privately-owned forest where Willie Jack and Leon trespass while waiting for Chunk to appear magically.

Sterlin Harjo utilizes horror tropes in ” Hunting.” At the start of the episode, there’s a fisheye lens used to film Leon lumbering through the forest in the dark. He holds a big bag of crow feed. The eerie background non-diegetic sound paired with the fisheye lens makes it seem like a ghost or spirit is watching Leon. Spooky instrumental music plays as he spreads the seeds around the forest floor. Leon suddenly looks up. There’s a wide shot of Leon starring at a giant hairy monster with red eyes. Later, Leon calls the scary creature he saw the Tall Man spirit.

The Tall Man spirit is known to be about twelve feet tall, covered with hair, and smells horrible. This indigenous legend mainly comes from the Dakota and Lakota people who live in South Dakota. The legend is linked to the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre, during which the U.S. Calvary murdered innocent women and children. The Pine Ridge Reservation, where the ancestors of the massacre survivors reside, has a troubling problem with youth suicides. Indigenous teen suicide is linked to the Tall Man spirit making the legend sinister. In some iterations, the spirit is a protector of forests. The Tall Man Spirit was seen around the time of Daniel’s death, which suggests perhaps he committed suicide. Leon refused to return to the forest to hunt for a year partly out of fear of the Tall Man Spirit and because he misses Daniel. The Tall Man Spirit lives in the forest, which implies that, most likely, he is protecting the land from the White Texas ranchers who now own it. Willie Jack thinks that the “Tall Man” was Daniel saying goodbye to his uncle one last time. The Tall Man’s red eyes watch Leon and Willie Jack drive home after shooting Chunk. Perhaps the spirit is Daniel watching over his family.

Alexis and Proudstar do a great job establishing the father-daughter chemistry between the two characters.  We feel for their grief. Before leaving home, Willie Jack whines about how long it’s taking her father to tie his shoes. Leon calmly explains that he is checking the supports in his sneakers. He then prompts Willie Jack to do the same with her sneakers, reminding me of my relationship with my father when I was a teenager. Paulina Alexis as Willie Jack sells the exasperated teenage daughter when she slowly enunciates, ” Let’s go,” then hurries out the door while her father finishes straightening out his shoes. The hunting sequence with Willie Jack and Leon feels authentic. We know the father-daughter pair take their rifles out to this same forest every year.  Proudstar and Alexis haven’t spent any screen time together before this, so it’s impressive that they can do all of this character work in one episode. The actors made their on-screen relationship feel genuine.

The only minor issue with the episode is the graveyard scene in which Willie Jack talks to Daniel’s grave about her conflicted feelings. Daniel’s grave is a little wooden house with a cross in front of it.  At first, Willie Jack’s “conversation” is lovely and believable. She expresses pride in finally being able to shoot Chunk in the head. She says she can’t imagine leaving her family and community for California; then, her monologue takes a turn. Willie Jack tells Daniel that she is not mad at him anymore. It makes sense that Willie Jack could be angry at Daniel for dying, but she has shown no signs of these feelings before. The writers needed to show signs of Willie Jack’s anger to justify her forgiveness of Daniel for dying. For example, the writers could reveal how Willie Jack’s personality has changed since Daniel’s death. Another option could be she overreacts to gang leader Jackie’s bullying. Even Willie Jack simply telling Leon that she hated Daniel for dying would have added emotional depth to her confession. Instead, she only mentions missing Daniel. Willie Jack’s admission comes out of nowhere. I don’t buy her forgiveness, which is too bad. Reservation Dogs does do an excellent job representing how torn Willie Jack feels over her desire to experience more of the world than Okern can offer and her love of her indigenous community.

Check out FX’s Reservation Dogs Season One on Netflix!

[native-indigenous-characters]

Today’s Native/Indigenous Character in Media is Thunder Eagle from Tribal Force by Jon Proudstar!

Thunder Eagle is of the Lakota!

“Growing up, Jon Proudstar realized the sad lack of positive representation of Native Americans in comic books. The team of five Native heroes work through their own issues, bringing attention many issues tribes face today such as higher instances of poverty and sexualized violence alongside inadequate social services all while using their powers to protect Native lands and cultures from the government.” - Why the Mainstream Media Keeps Screwing Up in Representing Native Americans By Elly Higgins, Julie Schreiber, and Claudia Scott

[stuff-diary]

Reservation Dogs (Seasons 1 & 2)

TV Shows/Dramas watched in 2023

Reservation Dogs (Seasons 1 & 2, 2021/2022, USA)

Creators: Sterlin Harjo & Taika Waititi

Mini-review:

Recently I've been on a roll when it comes to the TV shows I'm watching, and Reservation Dogs is another great addition to the list. It's funny, but also bittersweet and melancholy. In a way, it reminds me of those lazy summer days when we used to just hang out with our friends and do nothing major. These stories are not super original, but the setting and the atmosphere it builds through its writing and its characters makes the whole thing feel unique and so so special. Groundbreaking, even. I love that the show gives the full ensemble a chance to shine, focusing entire episodes even on supporting characters. Another thing I really appreciate is the way it centers around friendship, family and community. There's pretty much not a single hint of romance, it doesn't bother with the usual messy love storylines that tend to swamp shows about teenagers. So yeah, I ended up falling in love with all these characters and I can't wait to meet the again soon.