“ to be able to bring not just authentic Native culture but very specifically like my Tribe ’ s culture to a Netflix show was such an amazing experience ”
54 ART CHOWDER MAGAZINE
Joey Clift
oey Clift , an enrolled member of the Cowlitz Tribe , shares not only Native culture , but also his upbringing as a writer and consulting producer for the Netflix series “ Spirit Rangers ,” offering Native American viewers a chance to see themselves in a context that ’ s not often shown on the screen .
The show is an animated series about three half-Chumash , half-Cowlitz siblings who live in a national park . However , they have a secret . They ’ re the Spirit Rangers who use their powers to protect the land and help the spirits of the park .
Clift was interested in animation from a young age after watching shows like “ The Simpsons ,” “ Family Guy ,” “ Freakazoid !,” “ The Animaniacs ,” and Nickelodeon cartoons . These shows helped shape his style of comedy writing .
As a writer and producer , Clift was invited to bring his whole self into the production of the series . One episode he wrote was “ Trout Trouble ,” which featured three beaver spirits visiting from the Cowlitz Tribe . Not only does the show feature Cowlitz characters , it also includes the Tribe ’ s culture , such as their language and cedar hats .
“ For me , to be able to bring not just authentic Native culture but very specifically my Tribe ’ s culture to a Netflix show was such an amazing experience ,” Clift said . “ I often say it ’ s probably not just a career highlight , it ’ s probably a life highlight .”
Another part of the show that ’ s connected to him and his childhood is hoop dancing . The performance art is shown in the episode “ Hoop Dance Off ,” which was written by Clift . While he ’ s Cowlitz , Clift grew up on the Tulalip reservation , where he would often see hoop dance performances while in elementary school .
Hoop dancing , Clift said , was an assembly that would happen on occasion for the elementary school , which was run by the Tulalip Tribe . There was a specific hoop dancer who performed at the school often when Clift was a student and , as luck would have it , that same dancer was hired as a consultant in the episode for ensuring the dance ’ s accuracy .
“ That ’ s an art form that stuck with me for a really long time and I really wanted to shine a light on it in the mainstream space ,” he said .
Other episodes Clift has written include , “ Not Your Opossum