17/04/2023 - Set in Nebraska in 1879, the historical drama will tell the story of Ponca chief Standing Bear, who became the first Native American to be judicially granted civil rights under American law

Jim Sheridan (left) and Andrew Troy (© Troy Entertainment)

Six-time Academy Award nominee Jim Sheridan (In the Name of the Father, The Boxer, My Left Foot) and US filmmaker Andrew Troy (Midnight in the Orange Grove) are set to co-write, co-direct and produce the historical drama I Am a Man: The True Story of Chief Standing Bear. The feature is set in Nebraska in 1879 and zooms in on the story of Ponca chief Standing Bear, who, after experiencing decades of maltreatment and disenfranchisement, successfully argued in the US District Court in Omaha that Native Americans are “persons within the meaning of the law”, thus becoming the first Native American to be judicially granted civil rights under American law. Notably, the project has received formal resolutions of support from the Ponca Tribe.

“I’m delighted to be working with Andrew on this wonderful project,” said Sheridan, speaking to Deadline, the trade publication which first reported the news. Troy added: “Standing Bear has been completely left out of our school textbooks. Travelling the country, I learned that even Native people are unfamiliar with his name and the impact he had on their lives. Chief Standing Bear’s story needs to be told.”

Deadline disclosed that Troy, who is part Chiricahua Apache, has been developing the project for the past decade while working to gain the support of US state officials and Native Americans alike. Moreover, in 2019, the filmmaker was present for the unveiling ceremony of a new Chief Standing Bear statue in the US Capitol, making Standing Bear one of the first Native persons to be inducted into the Statuary Hall, and a previous draft of his script was an Academy Nicholl semifinalist in 2021.

I Am a Man: The True Story of Chief Standing Bear is being co-produced by Sheridan’s Hell’s Kitchen Limited (Ireland) and Troy’s Troy Entertainment (USA), along with Luca Matrundola and Anonymous Content exec Paul Green. The executive producers are Warren Anzalone and Bart Daly along with former Nebraska senators Colby Coash and Burke Harr.

The Nebraska Legislature passed a one-time bill providing a $5 million grant to the production. Furthermore, the project has received tax and development incentives from the Cherokee Nation Film Office and Screen Ireland.