The Canadian Dakota Ojibwe Tribal Council and Disney/Lucasfilm have announced they are partnering to translate the original “Star Wars: A New Hope” movie into an Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe language) version.
The Details
The Ojibwe version of the Star Wars movie aims to strengthen a First Nations language widely spoken in Manitoba, Ontario, and Minnesota.
While there are many Indigenous languages in Canada, Anishinaabemowin, or Ojibwe, was chosen because it has about 320,000 speakers in Canada and the U.S.
The Ojibwe dubbing of the Star Wars movie also has backing from the Canadian government, the country’s APTN network, and the University of Manitoba.
“A New Hope, one of the most iconic movies of all time, being available in Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe) will help showcase this language to the world,” says the Honourable Pascale St-Onge, Minister of Canadian Heritage.
Voice actors for the Ojibwe version will audition in early 2024 in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
The script translation into Anishinaabemowin and the voice acting will take place in Canada, while the sound mixing and postproduction will be performed at Skywalker Sound in California.
Here is the official announcement:
Other Dubs
In 2013, Lucasfilm completed an earlier Navajo-language version of “Star Wars: A New Hope,” and it represented the first major Hollywood film to be dubbed into a Native American language.
“Working on the Navajo version of Star Wars: A New Hope was a highlight of my career. I am very excited to revisit this type of project again and hopefully preserve and expand the Ojibwe language for future generations,” Lucasfilm senior manager of distribution operations Michael Kohn said in a statement.
The federal government in Canada said it hopes to help translate iconic movies into other First Nations languages.
“Gi-ga-miinigoowiz Mamaandaawiziwin” (“May the Force be with you”).
