This is an intensely personal yet curatorial statement by Frank J. King, who created and runs the Native Voice Film Festival along with his partner, Lise King, the festival director. King raises existential questions of self and culture within the native American context, positing that indigenous people have only scratched the surface in the definition of their cultural roots and that there is a new awakening underway, which flies in the face of old definitions created by pop culture, Hollywood and tourism. The Native Voice Film Festival is part of this, showing films that offer "a window into the root of who indigenous people truly are." Looking to take native identity beyond the 'rez' and create a more humanized self-image of native culture on an international scale, the festival will also attempt to bridge understanding between natives and non-natives.