Today we’d like to introduce you to Charlie Perry.
Hi Charlie, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I arrived in Los Angeles 7 years ago with a thousand dollars in my pocket and a dream to make movies. A few months prior I graduated the University of Kansas with a degree in film, and a girlfriend I was looking forward to marrying. Unfortunately after getting back from working with Native American students In Miami for the week my girlfriend informed me she didn’t want to continue our relationship and I had 24 hours to move out of our apartment. I moved back in with my parents who were living on the Prairie Band Potawatomi reservation at the time as I finished my first project post college as an offline editor for a streaming series about Native American tribes making significant contributions to society called Wassaja.
My buddy Colton who I went to school with at Haskell Indian Nations University had a dream in the middle of the night where God called him to leave his life of luxury in New Orleans and move to Los Angeles and live homeless on the streets. Over that 121 days I talked to him quiet frequently and would send him what money I could from time to time to help him eat for the day. Colton said I should come out to Los Angeles as well and try to chase my dreams so I did just that.
By the time I arrived in Los Angeles in September of 2017 Colton had moved into a hostel in West Adams. The hostel was full at the time and I stayed a week with a lady and her son in Alhambra before she decided it wasn’t working for her after I gave her a significant amount of money for rent. At the time it looked like my journey to Hollywood stardom as a producer would be over before it ever began. Colton took me to church with him the night before I was kicked out. We prayed and miraculously one of the hostel residents disappeared in the middle of the night and a bed opened up. I took the last of my money and borrowed 50 dollars from Colton and I officially moved into a bedroom that had 6 people sleeping in bunkbeds within. For over a year I lived with 28 people from all around the world in a 4 bedroom house.
After moving into the hostel Colton helped me get a job working for Chipotle in Beverly Hills. I hated it. After 3 months I told myself I’d rather go broke and move home then do something I didn’t love with all my heart. So I quit. At that point I did whatever I could to survive and somehow by the grace of God I did. I started getting out in the community and meeting people and quickly realized most people in Los Angeles talk a big game but rarely can deliver on their promises. It was the exact opposite of how people are where I grew up in Topeka, Kansas who typically under promise and over deliver.
In 2020 COVID hit. I was lucky enough to draw unemployment as a freelancer and that kept me going until I got a call from my good friend from the University of Kansas Rebekka. She was resigning from position as director of programming for a company in Lincoln, Nebraska called Vision Maker Media who funded and help distribute non-fiction programming for public television. She said I should apply for her position despite not knowing anything about public television funding and distribution, licensing contracts etc. I must have made a good impression with the organization as I was offered the job and quickly moved away from Los Angeles to take over for Rebekka.
9 months in my mother got very sick and my dad lost his leg. This was a very tough time for me mentally and I wanted to go home and help take care of them. I kept working hard as director of programming helping over 40 filmmakers survive in the midst of COVID however my boss saw that I longed to be back with my family and let me go from the organization. This was a tremendous blow at the time but instead of getting upset I gave my boss a hug and thanked her for teaching me everything she knows about the business side of non-fiction film. I returned back home to care from my mother and father. I was happy to be with them but I felt hopeless and depressed. I felt like I had failed as a filmmaker. My mother Jeannie saw this and she said, “Charlie between your dad and myself we make up an able-bodied person so get out of here and go back to California. Don’t give up on your dream.”
In February of 2021 I called my friend Michaiah in California who I met before I moved to Lincoln. He was living in Moreno Valley at the time and told me to book a plane ticket out to work for his printing and packaging company. He had an extra room at his place and agreed to waive the first months rent and help me get re-established. In May of 2021 my former boss called me and said I should fly out to their producer training event and give a presentation to new filmmakers the organization had recently funded. I did my presentation and sat down to lunch with a producer I had just met named Steven Hoggard. We talked for a bit about an idea to create an adventure cooking centered around Indigenous cruise. Steve took a liking to me and brought me on to his current project as associate producer. My first ever real producing role.
Unfortunately that project didn’t make it past pre-production but Steve and I still wanted to see if we could make the Indigenous adventure cooking show happen only problem was we didn’t have any money and no host. A few months later my old boss at Vision Maker Media called me and asked if I could man a both for them at an Indigenous youth event at the University of San Diego. Desperate to pay my rent for the month I agreed. As I spoke with Native youth Chef Pyet DeSpain came walking up to me. Pyet was fresh off winning Gordon Ramseys Next Level Chef season 1 and was the talk of Indian Country. I told her about Me and Steve’s idea for an adventure cooking show based around Indigenous cuisine.
Pyet told me that had been a dream of hers as well and gave me her card. The next few months I built trust between Pyet, Steve and myself and applied from preproduction funding from Vision Maker Media. We were awarded 25,000 dollars which we spent to create a pitch deck and sizzle reel from what would eventually turn into a 6 episode digital streaming series for PBS called Spirit Plate with Chef Pyet DeSpain. Everyone wanted to make a show with Pyet but I was the one who had the connections in public television to make it happen. We just released our series on PBS Food’s YouTube channel on October 22nd and have had a great response so far. We hope to find a path to long term success and get green lit for a second season so we can continue to empower Americans to reclaim their health through Indigenous food sovereignty and healthy living.
A lot happened along the way since I first moved to Los Angeles in 2017. My uncle died of a heart attack at the age of 44 after eating lunch at Denny’s with his son in 2020. My mother died a year later from a heart attack at the age of 54. Dad made it 2 years after mom passed and died of a heart attack himself as he secretly battled kidney failure leaving me and my 2 sisters to make our way in the world on our own. After mom died I started to walk and pray and read my Bible everyday. I wanted to break the generational curse that was over my family. In 2 years I lost 120 pounds and reclaimed my health.
I have a wonderful girlfriend now and hope for the future. The constant in all this has been my relationship with God and Jesus. In 2019 I was baptized a born again Christian and have put my faith in God to lead me in the right direction ever since. I tell people all the time that all the money in the world, fame and accomplishment is nothing compared to a few minutes walking with Jesus every morning. My life has dramatically changed for the better since letting God take over and trusting in Him. I have peace and hope in every situation. Uncertainty went from fear to an exciting adventure after welcoming Jesus into my heart.
People need hope and in a town that prides itself on fame and fortune I find comfort in being the one person that no longer cares for any of it. I’ve went through a lot of struggle. I can still remember going to the food pantry at the Dream Center for expired mac and cheese and applying for Cal Fresh which kept me from going hungry for 2 years. I am still hopefully to see where God will take me next.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Charlie Perry is a member of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation, a 2015 graduate of Haskell Indian Nations University (AA Media Communications) and 2017 graduate of the University of Kansas (BS Film and Media Studies, BS History).
Charlie currently works as a producer on various non-fiction projects centered around Native Americans including Vision Maker Media funded episodic series Spirit Plate w/ Pyet DeSpain for PBS. Previously Charlie served as Director of Programming for Vision Maker Media where he oversaw the production agreements of 40 plus filmmakers. He managed production agreement deliverable processes and brokered funded film distribution between Vision Maker Media and public television entities. He also spearheaded station relations and film festival outreach campaigns for the organization.
Charlie served as Editor-In-Chief of the Haskell Indian Leader newspaper. in 2015 he led the newsroom to 23 Native American Journalist Association (NAJA) awards.The most ever won in a one year span by Haskell Indian Nations University. During his time at Haskell, Charlie won over a dozen awards for his own video and written works through NAJA. Charlie is an accomplished documentary filmmaker and journalist who has written and produced over 100 non-fiction stories in his career.
Charlie began his career as a sports reporter for NDNsports.com where he reported on Native American athletes as they competed in NCAA/NAIA football and basketball, NFL, MLB and the Olympics. Charlie has worked in multiple major media markets including New York City, Los Angeles, Dallas, Louisville and Kansas City. Charlie’s dedication to Indigenous communities began with his grandmother Georgia Perry. In 1994, Charlie accompanied his grandmother, mother and aunt as they joined Dennis Banks and the American Indian Movement (AIM) on the Walk for Justice. He was 9 years old at the time.
Charlie is an outspoken advocate for Indigenous social justice, environmental protection and tribal sovereignty. He joined Water Protectors from around the world on four separate occasions in Cannonball, North Dakota, documenting the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s fight against the Dakota Access Pipeline. He has since worked for Native American media outlets including First Nations Experience (FNX), Indian Country Today (ICT) and Native News Online.
Charlie’s mission is to increase the exposure of Indigenous communities through accurate representation in film and media. He believes education and cooperation sit at the core of advancing national discussion concerning Indigenous communities across North America.
He currently lives in Los Angeles, California where he enjoys long walks on the beach, praying and taking pictures with his phone of life unfolding in front of him.
“God has an adventure called life waiting for all of us. We only need to wake up every morning and seize the day.”
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
I see the traditional Hollywood film industry dying and being reborn as a more creator centered industry that tells unique stories that people can identify with. YouTube will dominate all other forms of media consumption. It already is. People want to feel part of something bigger. They want to actively engage with content to make their lives better and more fulfilling. No longer is it good enough to provide audiences a temporary escape from reality.
They yearn for content that will stir their soul and are growing tired of blockbuster tent pool movies. They want to see real people over coming real adversity and find hope for themselves through those stories. Audiences are tired of doom and gloom they want are desperate for hope above all else in a fallen world.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: charliemedia and spiritplateshow
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PBSFood (where they can watch Spirit Plate)
- Other: [email protected] (if anyone would like to email me for speaking engagements etc)
