Georgiana Ausan
Omaha, NE – An experienced filmmaker and journalist with a passion for Native American storytelling has joined the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance as the new assistant director.
Georgiana Ausan, a resident of Omaha, Nebraska, brings years of experience in filmmaking, journalism, storytelling and non-profits, to her new position, which she started earlier this month. “Ever since I was young and even after high school and college, I always wanted to share stories about Native American people,” she said. “My background and passion are really in Native American storytelling and journalism.”
The opportunity to work with the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance was the perfect next step for Ausan in her career, she said. Now, she can share Native American stories with others using multiple platforms, she said. “Multiple platform storytelling is important right now with the industry we work in and we live in as it is important that we focus on ways to share stories.”
Jodi Rave Spotted Bear, IMFA executive director, said she is delighted and inspired with the skills that Ausan brings to the organization. “Georgiana has a wonderful media skill set and a depth of organizational experience. She will help us achieve a new level of growth for years to come,” Spotted Bear said. “She will play a pivotal role in helping connect to the American Indian community with stories created and produced for the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance’s digital publishing arm, Buffalo’s Fire.”
In her new role, Ausan will help plan and manage the creation of daily video news segments for distribution on Buffalo’s Fire. She will also take a lead role for managing innovative advertising strategies to increase revenue performance.
“What is exciting about working with the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance is that the organization is entering a new phase of growth,” Ausan said. “I am excited to join the team and kickstart content and distribution of news and information relevant to an American Indian audience. It’s news that typically has a universal appeal to a general audience.”
Ausan, a citizen of the Navajo Nation, was also recently recognized for her work as consulting producer on the news/news feature “Unjust Enrichment: Rural Water Sold to Fracking Industry,” which won Buffalo’s Fire a Silver Telly award in 2020. “I wanted to help them create this story, which needed to be told,” said Ausan. “We have a lot more stories to share.”
Here’s the link to the award-winning news feature Unjust Enrichment: Rural Water Sold to Fracking Industry at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPvqVF0g_UQ&feature=emb_logo.
Ausan made her first documentary film at age 18, which reenforced her goals of pursuing a career in journalism. She is a graduate of Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska with a double major in journalism and theatre. She studied under the New Mexico Filmmaker’s Intensive, received a Film Producing certificate from the College of Santa Fe in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and has been working with filmmakers for more than 10 years in production and post-production, marketing and community outreach. “It’s exciting to bring that knowledge to the table,” she said.
Ausan previously served as director of Suicide Prevention at Society of Care, an organization that helps Native American communities identify and address means of enhancing suicide prevention for Native youth. This is a grant program funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). She also worked as an assistant director and festival coordinator for Vision Maker Media and has produced and worked on scores of films.
# # #About
Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance
The Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance works to advance freedom of press issues
relevant to American Indian communities. Native people have a right to be seen
and heard through independent media as a way to be informed and to embrace
Indigenous language and culture. The organization publishes on buffalosfire.com.
About
Buffalo’s Fire
An independent digital news site, Buffalo’s Fire invites a conversation on
tribal community, culture, and communication.
Unjust Enrichment: Rural Water Sold to Fracking Industry (Videos do not reflect advertisers’ views)
