Indigenous influencers, accelerate! TikTok program puts First Nations lens on creating video, advocacy, working with brands By: Eva Wasney Posted: 2:24 PM CST Friday, Nov. 24, 2023 Last Modified: 3:39 PM CST Monday, Nov. 27, 2023 Updates

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This article was published 24/11/2023 (960 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Last week, the ornate hall of the Millennium Centre was awash with blue light and filled with internet personalities big and small. In one corner, a 360 camera station; in another, a photo booth with a backdrop bearing a familiar music note logo. Plenty of opportunities to document the night in style.

The event, hosted by TikTok Canada and the National Screen Institute, was a chance for Indigenous social media creators from across the country to meet in real life and share anecdotes about how the platform has impacted their lives and careers.

The networking started with a panel discussion about the power of first-person storytelling, featuring a quartet of influencers with millions of followers between them. Topics ranged from community building to authentic representation to advocacy.

The audience cheered as the presenters outlined how posting short, snappy videos online had translated into successful businesses, acting gigs and book deals.

The conversation left Olivia Bishop feeling inspired.

“I’m just going to start posting and get over my fear of talking,” Bishop says with soft-spoken determination. “After this, I want to start sharing my experiences.”

Bishop is Woodland Cree from Pukatawagan in northern Manitoba. She lives in Winnipeg now with her two kids and is pursuing a degree in Indigenous studies.

Navigating life in the city as a single mother after leaving an abusive relationship is one of the personal experiences she wants to start sharing with her TikTok followers.

It feels like a vulnerable but worthwhile exercise for the self-professed introvert.

“I think it’s what people need to hear … what if a mother is in a bad situation and she sees my story?” Bishop says. “It took me 100 tries to leave my ex-husband; it was the fear of not knowing what was out there and how to survive on my own. I want to use my experience to inspire others.”

Bishop (@oliviacaribou) started posting on TikTok in 2021, while taking part in a walk to Ottawa in response to the announced discovery of 215 potential unmarked gravesites on the grounds of a former residential school in Kamloops, B.C.

Her content ranges from posts raising awareness about Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls to videos of her daughter dancing in a jingle dress.

Bishop is one of 40 participants in the TikTok Accelerator for Indigenous Creators, a free six-week course presented by the National Screen Institute (NSI) designed to teach up-and-coming influencers how to make the most of the platform.

The accelerator is now in its third year and is a chance for the NSI — a national film training centre based in Winnipeg — to engage with a new kind of filmmaker.

“In the last few years, especially during COVID, shorter video content really blossomed and became a very mainstream thing,” says Sarah Simpson-Yellowquill, NSI’s manager of programs and development. “We wanted to be able to keep up with what everyone is creating.”

Gabriel Kematch (@gabe.kematch) is Swampy Cree from Sapotayewak Cree Nation, living in Winnipeg. He uses TikTok to expand his profile as an actor, posting comedic videos that have earned him thousands of followers and real-world recognition.

“I’m starting to get recognized when I’m out and about now,” he says. “I’ve been an actor since I was 17 and it’s quite a struggle … I went to auditions and nobody was giving me a chance, so last year I said, ‘You know what, I’m gonna go try and get exposure on my own.’”

Kematch signed up for the accelerator program to learn how to expand his content and professional presence online.

Sherry Mckay is the program’s adviser. The local comedian has been making TikToks since the platform’s inception in 2018 — something her four kids didn’t immediately love.

“It was super cringey at first, but now they dig it,” she says with a laugh.

Mckay (@sherry.mckay) is Ojibway and Anishinaabe and a band member of Sagkeeng First Nation. Comedy was the focus from the beginning, but as time went on, she felt pressure to educate non-Indigenous followers about things like the Indian Act and intergenerational trauma.

“People started questioning my indigeneity because I didn’t fit their particular idea or image of what Indigenous was, so I got thrown into advocating for myself as an Indigenous woman creating Indigenous content,” she says. “It was difficult, because I didn’t want to be a voice for Indigenous people … I wanted to focus on comedy.”

Despite the challenges, Mckay has amassed more than 600,000 followers, signed brand deals and booked standup comedy gig thanks to her TikTok presence. She’s passionate about sharing her experiences as an influencer — good and bad — with other enterprising creators through the accelerator program.

“I’m bringing that Indigenous lens to things like working with brands or working with a talent agent,” Mckay says. “It’s changed my life in ways that I didn’t know were possible. It’s given me a place to present myself where opportunities can come to me. It’s also given me a place to create and express myself, not just as an Indigenous person, but as a mom, as a woman, as someone who lives in Canada.

“It’s changed my life.”

eva.wasney@winnipegfreepress.com

X: @evawasney