In the Land of the Head Hunters

Selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress Legendary photographer Edward S. Curtis devoted his life to documenting the world of Native Americans in firm belief that the information he gathered must be collected at once or the opportunity will be lost. In 1914, he created one of the first feature length dramas ever made a masterpiece filmed with and starring members of the Kwakwaka wakw (Kwakiutl) tribe of British Columbia. Curtis haunting melodrama, set before Europeans arrived on the North Pacific Coast, tells the story of a warrior s spiritual journey, of love won and lost, and of a battle between tribes to save the warrior s bride. The film s attention to historic detail and Curtis legendary eye for composition make IN THE LAND OF THE HEAD HUNTERS one of the most beautiful films of the silent era and a stunning evocation of a culture famed for its incredible artistic heritage. Aspects of the film were based on he Kwakwaka wakw s oral traditions and it accurately portrays rituals, including the potlatch, which were strictly prohibited by Canadian law until 1951.