Andrew Troy’s ‘I Am A Man’ Among First Recipients Of Cherokee Nation Film Office’s Incentive

Matt Grobar
·3 min read
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EXCLUSIVE: Andrew Troy’s film I Am a Man – The True Story of Chief Standing Bear has been named as one of the first that will benefit from the Cherokee Nation Film Office’s tax incentive program, in support of filmmakers seeking filming locations and crew in Oklahoma. The CNFO’s mission with its $1M incentive, announced earlier this year, is to entice more film and TV projects to shoot within the boundaries of the Cherokee Nation—following a recent influx of projects like Killers of the Flower Moon and Reservation Dogs—while also supporting Native stories and increasing the presence of Native Americans in every level of the film and television industry.

I Am a Man is billed as an epic historical drama about the landmark Trial of Standing Bear vs. the United States of America, which became a defining moment in U.S. history, as it helped to establish rights for all Native Americans. When Standing Bear stood up in an Omaha, Nebraska court of law in 1879 to speak his now famous words “I am a man,” his heartfelt speech helped to reverse an ill-conceived law designed to repress Natives, which in an unlikely turn of events gave all Natives the legal right to be considered “human beings” under U.S. law, thus setting legal precedent for many future civil rights cases within the U.S. courts. The case was led by trial attorneys Andrew J. Poppleton and John Lee Webster who argued that “Native Americans are “persons” within the meaning of the law.”

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I Am a Man also this year received a grant from the Nebraska Film Office for filming in the Cornhusker State. Troy, who is part Chiricahua Apache, will direct from his Nicholls Semifinalist script. His banner Troy Entertainment will produce alongside Luca Matrundola (Waiting for the Barbarians, Muti) and longtime Anonymous Content exec Paul Green (The Revenant, Passion of the Christ). The film’s ensemble cast will present an opportunity for Native people to be portrayed by Native actors.

“I’m grateful to receive the CNFO incentive. It’s a tremendous gesture having the Cherokee Nation and so many Native people stand up in support of this film about Chief Standing Bear,” said Troy. “When the CNFO first reached out to me after reading my script, they expressed that this type of story is exactly why they originally decided to create the CNFO program. I am honored to include Native people and the many state and world leaders who stand in support of the telling of Standing Bear’s story.”

“I Am a Man is an important Native American story that needs to be told. We are proud to offer our film incentive to such a project, which has the backing of the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska,” added Jennifer Loren, director of the Cherokee Nation Film Office and Original Content. “CNFO looks forward to becoming a hub for Native American storytelling and this is just the beginning.”

Troy recently partnered with American Psycho scribe Guinevere Turner on the adoption drama Midnight in the Orange Grove based on true events, which he will direct from his and Turner’s script. Upon completing Midnight, he will immediately begin production on I Am a Man.

When the Cherokee Nation Film Office launched in 2019, it became the first Native American Film Office to open in the United States. More information on its Incentive Program can be found here.

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