If there is one thing that the Twilight Saga has done for the Native American community is that it portrays them in a new and positive light in a contemporary setting. That is according to Chaske Spencer, who plays the wolf pack leader Sam Uley in the Twilight Saga.

“There’s a lot of stereotypes that have been squashed,” Spencer said. “We’re part of this pop culture phenomenon, and we’re put in a different light. And the kids see that, and they’re digging on it. They love that vibe.”

Not only that, the films has given a generation of Native American actors a chance to appear in a block buster film without the feathers and teepee’s but still preserves the culture.

Do you feel the franchise has created more opportunities for Native American actors outside of the franchise?

Chaske Spencer: “Yes, it has. It has. What I like about it is it has brought us to pop culture in a way that’s never been done before in film. We’ve been around for a while. I’ve been working for like 10 years, and these two have also been around and working, and what I like about it is it’s finally brought us to a place where we’re not always playing with the leather and feather. That’s how we paid our dues. And I like also, and it’s kind of up to the media as well to accept us as other than being just the mystical figures and put on the leather and feather, and speaking like in a ‘rez’ accent all the time – because I’ve done that so many times. And the kids, the kids are more accepting of us than anything else. That’s what’s really cool.”

Julia Jones: “That’s also what excites me is that we’re being put in front of primarily children and people who are in the process of defining their ideas of what Native Americans are. I think that’s probably the most valuable aspect of the way that Native Americans are portrayed in this film. Because I still feel a lot of adults and in the media trying to figure it out. Like, I’m not an actress yet, I’m a ‘Native America actress’. And it’s not quite normalized to most people who grew up watching movies, like most Native movies.”

Alex Meraz: “And speaking more on that is it’s in a contemporary setting. Like Chaske was saying, leather and feather period piece, we don’t have bows and arrows. We don’t even have clothes though.”

Aside from that, Chaske, together with Alex Meraz and Julia Jones, also talked about coming back for the third Twilight film under David Slade and the camaraderie on-set.

For the guys, how was working with David Slade this time compared to working with Chris Weitz last time?

Chaske Spencer: “They’re both really good directors. With David, he’s very precise in what he wants. He knows exactly, and so did Chris. But what I liked about David is it’s fast; it’s quick. I like working with different directors, it keeps you on your toes. He’s a sweet, charming man. I’ve seen his movies, the vampire [film]30 Days or40 Days of Night I think it was.30. I saw that about a year before that. Yeah, with him it was just real fast. It was really fast, for me anyway, my experience with him.”

Alex Meraz: “I enjoyed working with him for the fact that I experiment doing short films, and being a filmmaker and seeing his process he’s very much a filmmaker and not so much just a director. There’s moments where he threatens to just actually get the camera himself and film it. He’s so involved. He always has a camera wrapped around his neck and he’s documenting the whole process. So that was really exciting to see, and inspiring.”

“And Chris Weitz, he’s just incredible. I mean, he’s such a gentleman and for me, entering this phenomenon that isTwilight, it was really great to have someone at the helm like that to just kind of guide us into it smoothly. And now that we’ve transitioned into another film, we kind of know the gist. We know where to go with it, and David was just a great person to take on the franchise.”

Have you heard from any of the tribes and in particular the one on which this was based? Alex Meraz: “The fascinating thing about portraying a tribe that actually does exist is that the stuff Stephenie had taken from the tribe, she kind of mixed it in the realm of fantasy. But now a lot of people are going to Washington State, they’re going to La Push where the Quileute tribe actually do reside, and they’re learning more. They’re forced to ask questions, learn more about the culture. And I think that that’s great that they’re getting a spotlight to introduce and to tell the story, the real creation story. That’s important. I think that fans are so into it that they want to learn where this germinated from, the root of where the wolf pack comes from.”

Chaske Spencer: “And all over Native country we’re getting feedback. It’s like they’re saying, ‘It’s about time.’ We’ve got mad support from our people on the reservations. It’s just opened up a whole different door to us. And also, it’s a little pressure, too, because it’s almost like we have to be role models now. It’s something that kind of scares me as well, because that’s a big load to take on.”

Julia Jones: “It is so gratifying to hear from people who look up to you and see you in these places that they never thought they could ever dream to be. It’s emotional [tearing up while talking]. You really feel like you’re opening up people’s minds who otherwise thought that they couldn’t dream big. And that’s such a huge opportunity. It’s such a gift.”

Chaske Spencer: “Statistically, we’re not supposed to be here. We grew up on reservations and I don’t know if any of you have visited them, but it’s a third-world country there. You know, there’s a lot of poverty, lot of alcoholism, lot of drug addiction. So we’re very fortunate to be here, and we know that. We’re very lucky and grateful to be here.”

To read the rest of the interview, click on the link above.

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