A cross-station public media project introduces Powwow Bound, a video game exploring Menominee identity through storytelling and cultural celebration.
Menominee artists, educators and cultural experts to develop the story-driven video game Powwow Bound: A Menominee Homecoming. It invites players to explore contemporary Menominee life through the lens of the annual contest powwow.
“This project allows us to tell important stories that often aren’t seen in video games, elevating underrepresented voices in the same ways we do on television and radio. The cross-station collaboration also facilitates the sharing of costs and station resources, maximizing our common public media missions,” said Jacob Schwitzer, a game producer for Nebraska Public Media Labs, a space for experimentation, exploration and incubation in content creation and storytelling.
Renowned for their deep connection to the land, the Menominee Nation is an Algonquin tribe whose homelands encompass what is now known as Wisconsin and Upper Michigan. In an area that is rich with forests, rivers and lakes, the Menominee are best known for their sustainable forestry practices, their tribal college and a successful grassroots Tribal Restoration campaign.
Created for players from middle school to adulthood, Powwow Bound: A Menominee Homecoming. follows DJ, a teenage girl reconnecting with her Menominee roots during her family’s return to the reservation for the first time in years. Set around the Woodland Bowl, the narrative traces the family’s emotional journey to reconnect with their culture, language and each other as they prepare for a special dance honoring DJ’s late grandfather.