Tracey Deer facts for kids

Tracey Penelope Tekahentakwa Deer (born February 28, 1978) is a talented filmmaker from the Mohawk nation. She is a writer, film director, and even a newspaper publisher. Tracey Deer grew up in Kahnawake, Quebec, Canada.

She has created many award-winning documentaries for Rezolution Pictures. This is a film company run by Indigenous people. In 2008, Tracey Deer became the first Mohawk woman to win a Gemini Award. She won it for her documentary called Club Native. Her TV show Mohawk Girls was very popular and ran for five seasons. Tracey Deer also started her own company to make short films.

In 2021, her movie Beans was shown at a big film festival for children in New York. This movie tells a story about the Oka crisis from 1990. Tracey Deer herself lived through this time when she was a teenager. A young Mohawk actress named Kiawenti:io Tarbell stars in the film.

Early Life and Learning

Tracey Deer was born in 1978. She grew up in a large, loving Mohawk family. Their home was in Kahnawake, a reserve in Quebec, Canada. This reserve is located south of the St. Lawrence River, across from Montreal.

Tracey is a member of the Bear Clan. She went to local schools in Kahnawake. Later, she moved to the United States for college. She studied film at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. She earned a degree in film studies.

Tracey Deer's Career

Tracey Deer has made many films and TV shows. She often tells stories about her community and Mohawk life.

Making Documentaries

• Mohawk Girls (2005)

Tracey Deer's first big film project was a documentary called Mohawk Girls. It looked at the lives of three teenage girls from her reserve. They faced a tough choice: should they leave the reserve for more opportunities, or stay and keep their Mohawk rights? This film won the Alanis Obomsawin Best Documentary Award in 2005.

• One More River: The Deal that Split the Cree (2005)

Tracey Deer also helped direct this documentary. It won the Best Documentary Award at a film festival in Quebec. It was also nominated for a Gemini Award.

• Kanien'kehá:ka/Living the Language (2008)

This film is about the Kanien'kehá:ka language immersion program. This program helps people learn the Mohawk language. It takes place in Akwesasne, another Mohawk Nation reserve.

• Club Native (2008)

Tracey Deer won her first Gemini Award for Club Native. This documentary explores what it means to be Mohawk. It talks about community and rules for who belongs. The film also won the Canada Award for best Canadian multi-cultural program. Tracey Deer won another Gemini for her writing. Club Native also won several other awards at different film festivals.

Other Film Projects

In 2009, Tracey Deer worked on a short 3D film called Crossing the Line. This film showed Indigenous talent at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

She also worked on a comedy TV show idea called Escape Hatch. This show was about four young Mohawk women living in Kahnawake. It explored their lives and search for relationships. In 2014, this idea became the TV series Mohawk Girls. It ran for five seasons until 2017.

Tracey Deer started her own film company, Mohawk Princess Productions. She wants to make her own short fiction films.

Her drama film Beans won an award for screenwriting in 2019. It was first shown at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival. The movie is set during the Oka crisis of 1990. It features a young Mohawk girl nicknamed "Beans." She is played by Kiawaenti:io Tarbell.

TV Shows

In 2014, Tracey Deer wrote and produced the first season of Mohawk Girls. This TV show was based on her documentary. It was shown on the CBC. The show followed the daily lives of four young women in Kahnawake. The fifth and final season was completed in 2017.

In 2019, Tracey Deer joined the writing team for the TV series Anne with an E. This show is based on the classic book Anne of Green Gables. In that season, the writers added a storyline about Indigenous people. A young Mi'kmaq girl named Ka'kwet became a new character. She was played by Mohawk actress Kiawenti:io Tarbell. Ka'kwet becomes friends with Anne.

Personal Life

Tracey Deer is married. In April 2017, a newspaper reported rumors about her living situation. The rules in Kahnawake do not allow people who are not First Nations to live on the reserve. Tracey Deer said the rumor was false. She was concerned because she has spoken out about these community rules.