Arlene Bowman, M.F.A. '86

Independent Dine’ filmmaker Arlene Bowman, M.F.A. '86, will begin production next month on “Our Language,” a personal-experimental documentary about Na Dene- and Dine’-speaking peoples in Canada and preserving their languages.

Bowman discovered her passion for art at a young age, drawing faces and bodies in elementary school before transitioning to still photography at fourteen. She earned her bachelor of fine arts in still photography from the San Francisco Art Institute in 1971 and later pursued filmmaking after moving to Los Angeles in 1977. Bowman furthered her studies at UCLA by obtaining a master of fine arts in film production, which is now her primary focus.

Some of the notable films and videos by Bowman include “ShiArl,” a four-and-a-half-minute music video released in 2022, “Locked Doors,” a four-minute song poem video from 2013, and “Illegal Anger,” a four-minute song poem video from 2011. Additionally, she has worked on “The Graffiti,” a 30-minute experimental drama video from 2010, “Song Journey,” a documentary video that runs for an hour and was released in 1994, and “Women and Men Are Good Dancers,” a five-minute video from 1994. In 1986, she created “Navajo Talking Picture,” a 40-minute color 16mm film.

Apart from filmmaking, Bowman is involved in photography, open mic performances, singing, dancing (particularly modern dance and jazz) and taking dance classes. Her aspirations include writing, directing and producing a feature drama called “Turquoise Sun” in L.A., along with organizing an Indigenous Woman Filmmakers’ Conference called “Turquoise Filmmaker” and establishing a non-profit organization to support low-income and Indigenous filmmakers.

“I mostly spent my time in the film/TV department when I attended UCLA but came to know some Native American students,” Bowman said. “Really good people. Glad Richard Oakes, a Mohawk guy, helped start American Indian Studies at UCLA. Also, he led the occupation of Alcatraz from Nov. 20, 1969, to June 11, 1971.”