Joe Buffalo (born 1976) is a Cree skateboarder and actor from Canada.[1] He is most noted as a two-time Vancouver Film Critics Circle nominee for Best Supporting Actor in a Canadian Film, receiving nominations at the Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards 2016 for Hello Destroyer[2] and at the Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards 2017 for Luk'Luk'I.[3] He is a 2023 recipient of the Inspire Award in the sports category.[4]
Biography
editA member of the Samson Cree Nation in Alberta, he is the great-grandson of Joe Buffalo, a former deputy chief who had an acting role in the 1958 film The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw, and the great-grand nephew of actor Gordon Tootoosis.[1] A survivor of the Indian residential school system, he moved to Ottawa after school to begin his skateboarding career, although he struggled with substance abuse issues in his early years.[5] Since getting sober, he has also served as an advocate and speaker on indigenous mental health.[6] He received the Inspire Award, in the sports category in 2023.[7]
He is associated with the indigenous-owned skateboard company Colonialism Skateboards, which released a professional model in 2021 that features Buffalo's student identification card from the Qu'Appelle Indian Residential School printed on the top.[8]
As an actor, he has also had supporting roles in the films The Fish and the Sea, Cake Day and Brother, I Cry.
He is the subject of Amar Chebib's 2021 short documentary film Joe Buffalo.[9]
References
edit- ^ a b Lisa Mayerhöfer, "Joe Buffalo: Colonialism Skateboards, remodelling, and strength in communal storycrafting". Discorder, April 24, 2020.
- ^ Frank Peebles, "Hello Destroyer scores with critics". Prince George Citizen, January 18, 2017.
- ^ "2018 Nominees Announced". Vancouver Film Critics Circle, December 15, 2017.
- ^ "Indspire Awards". Indspire. Retrieved 2023-06-14.
- ^ Kyle Muzyka, "Joe Buffalo survived residential school. Then he became a professional skateboarder". Unreserved, October 9, 2020.
- ^ "Skateboarding pros take sport, along with message of hope, to Indigenous youth". Calgary Herald, July 21, 2020.
- ^ "Joe Dion Buffalo". Indspire. 2023-05-10. Retrieved 2023-06-14.
- ^ Bob Kronbauer, "New skateboard features pro skater's Indian Residential School ID card". The Squamish Chief, July 16, 2021.
- ^ Pat Mullen, "Now Streaming: Joe Buffalo Shares a Survivor’s Story". Point of View, October 8, 2021.
External links
edit- Joe Buffalo at IMDb