WEAVING WORLDS

Navajo tales of how the West was spun - an exploration of the intricate relationships between Navajo rug weavers and reservation traders, this insightful documentary reveals the delicate balance between maintaining cultural traditions, economic survival, and the artistic validation sought by many weavers.

About the director:

In 2007, director Bennie Klain (Navajo) was selected to participate in Tribeca All Access, a professional development program for emerging filmmakers held during the Tribeca Film Festival. His feature documentary Weaving Worlds premiered at the 2007 South by Southwest Film Conference and Festival in Austin, Texas. His short film Yada Yada won the Teueikan Second Prize at Montreal's First Peoples' Festival in 2003.

A fluent Navajo speaker, he often incorporates the language into his work. Klain co-produced and worked as a translator for The Return of Navajo Boy, directed by Jeff Spitz, which screened at more than 60 festivals and has received many honors. Klain serves as the Native Programming Liason for the Ciné las Americás Film Festival in Austin, Texas, where his production company, TricksterFilms, is based.

His early media experience was in radio. Klain produced Windsongs, a Native American music program syndicated for public radio. He anchored three award-winning Navajo language newscasts daily at the Navajo radio station KTNN. Klain graduated from the University of Texas at Austin, in Radio-Television-Film.