Preceded by short: Cowtipping: The Militant Indian Waiter (Randy Redroad, USA, 1992). A Cherokee waiter working the graveyard shift at a Manhattan cafe continually finds himself in confrontation with his "non-hunting, non-gathering" customers. For them, he is a unique specimen on which to test their guilt, fascination, and ignorance concerning the American Indian. (10 mins, Color, 3/4" video, projected, From Third World Newsreel) Based on the novel A Dream Like Mine by M. T. Kelly, Clearcut is a brutal look at mainstream North American society's unwillingness to pay attention both to environmental concerns and to the beliefs and values of indigenous cultures. In the great northern forest of the Canadian Shield, loggers are clearcutting the pristine wilderness, leaving behind a barren land that "looks like the moon on a bad day." Enraged by the callousness of the logging company, Arthur (Graham Greene), an angry young Indian-rights activist, kidnaps Peter (Ron Lea), a lawyer unsuccessfully trying to protect the land through Canada's court system. Although it has a clear political urge, Clearcut transcends the genre of agenda film. As Arthur is revealed to be an Indian trickster spirit, conjured into human form, the film evolves into a supernatural thriller. With its eerie mysticism and stark metaphors, Clearcut is compelling, disturbing, and finally devastating. -Lisanne Skyler