Schedule

It is a Good Day to (Re)Live Little Big Man:
The Movie and 50 Years of Changing Perspectives
about Indian Wars in the American West

Little Big Man Symposium Schedule, June 19-21, 2023

Day 1 – Morning Lectures (at Hardin Middle School and film at Center Cinema) (8:30 - 12) [3½ hours]

• Tim Bernardis, M.Ed. – Introduction to the Little Big Man Symposium and Project: Themes and Components [15 minutes]
• C. Adrian Heidenreich, Ph.D. – Introduction to the Little Big Man Exhibit: Images and Interpretation of Historical, Contemporary, and International Fascination – Native Americans in the Plains Indian Wars, the Little Bighorn Battle, and the Film [30 minutes]
• [15 minute break and move to Center Cinema]
• Screening of the Film Little Big Man (at Center Cinema in Hardin) [2½ hours]
• Move back to Hardin Middle School and Lunch in Cafeteria (12 - 1:30)

Day 1 – Afternoon Lectures (at Hardin Middle School) (1:30 – 5) [3½ hours]

• Phenocia Old Coyote Bauerle, B.A. – Origins of Little Big Man the Novel, Arthur Penn’s Filmic Vision, and How the Book was Transformed into Film [30 minutes]
• Joanna Hearne, Ph.D. – The Significance of Little Big Man in the Context of the 1960s/1970s and in the Western Film Genre [30 minutes]
• Michael Donahue, M.F.A. – Historical Realities, Public Views and Interpretations of the 1876 Campaign, Custer, and the Little Bighorn Battle, and How Little Big Man Shaped Public Perceptions of History and Native Americans [30 minutes]
• Paul Hutton, Ph.D. – Public Myths and Images of Custer and the Battle of the Little Bighorn as Shown in and as Influenced by Little Big Man and Other Films [30 minutes]
• Michael Welsh, Ph.D. – The Little Bighorn Battle and Custer in Public Memory, Controversy, and Symbolism as Reflected in Little Big Man [30 minutes]

Day 2 – Morning Lectures (at Hardin Middle School) (8:30 - 12) [3½ hours]

• Panel of Northern Cheyenne – A Cheyenne Perspective on Little Big Man: The Making of the Movie and the Portrayal of the History and Culture of the “Human Beings” (Cheyennes) [45 minutes]
• Dale Old Horn, M.A. – Facts and Figments of Imagination in Indian Cultural Expressions and Crow Performances in Little Big Man [30 minutes]
• Panel of Crow Men – Today is a Good Day to Act Like an Indian Man: Reminiscences and Experiences of the Filming of Little Big Man (participation in auditions, acting, crew, interactions with professional actors) [45 minutes]
• Panel of Crow Women – Today is a Good Day to Act Like an Indian Woman: Reminiscences and Experiences of the Filming of Little Big Man (participation in auditions, acting, crew, interactions with professional actors) [45 minutes]
• Lunch in Hardin Middle School cafeteria (12 - 1:45)
• Travel in buses to Medicine Tail Coulee leaving at 2

Day 2 – Afternoon Field Trip: Medicine Tail Coulee (2:30 - 4:30) [2 hours]

• Field trip to Medicine Tail Coulee (part of the historic Little Bighorn Battlefield and filming site of the Last Stand in Little Big Man) including reminiscences of actors and other participants in the film: preparation of the riders, logistics of filming, the filming action in Medicine Tail Coulee.

Day 3 – Morning Lectures (at Hardin Middle School) (8:30 - 12:30) [3 hours 15 minutes]

• C. Adrian Heidenreich, Ph.D., Tim Bernardis, M.Ed. – Experiences and Thoughts of Arthur Penn, Chief Dan George and Dustin Hoffman about Little Big Man with Quotes from Articles and Interview Clips [30 minutes]
• Victoria Bad Bear and Shirleen Bad Bear Hill – Reminiscences about Their Family Experiences On and Off Set in the Making of Little Big Man, Including Interactions with the Stars and the Adoption of Dustin Hoffman [30 minutes]
• Western film historian Andrew Patrick Nelson, Ph.D. – Exploring Selected Significant and Key Scenes in Little Big Man (screening of scenes and commentary) [1 hour]
• Lou Mandler, M.A. – Bringing Little Big Man to Montana and Making the Film: Willard Fraser, Edison Real Bird, Earl Rosell and Intercultural Relations [30 minutes]
• Lunch in Hardin Middle School cafeteria (12:30 - 2)

Day 3 – Afternoon Lectures and Panels (at Hardin Middle School) (2 - 5) [3 hours]

• Janine Pease, Ed.D. – Images and Participation of Indians in Movies and How Little Big Man Reflected an Indigenous Perspective and Centralized Native Roles in Film [30 minutes]
• Student Panel – Contemporary Intertribal Perceptions of Culture, History and Today’s Generation Stimulated by Little Big Man: Students from Little Big Horn College (Crow) and Chief Dull Knife College (Northern Cheyenne) on Intertribal Rivalries and Effects on “our generation” of Native People [45 minutes]
• Capstone Panel – The Significance and Place of Little Big Man in Western Films, History, Symbolism, Indigenous Experience, Little Bighorn Battle Interpretation and Battlefield Preservation: Janine Pease, Cheyenne tribal member, Paul Hutton, Michael Welsh, Rodney Thomas, Tim Bernardis, C. Adrian Heidenreich, Phenocia Old Coyote Bauerle [45 minutes]

[15 minute breaks in between lectures]

Day 1 is comprised of the film screening and the context of the 19th and 20th centuries including the actual history in 1876, the book Little Big Man, the 1960s and 70s, the myths, public memory and symbolism and the movies – thus, the significance of the movie.

Day 2 is comprised of Native perspectives and experiences about the movie and its making.

Day 3 is comprised of a mix of both—the making of the movie and the experiences of the Crows and the stars, selected scenes, Indians in the movies, and the perspectives of Crow and Cheyenne youth.