Computers, Society, and Nature

In reportedly the first effort of its kind, a US Indian tribe is using 3D animations to pass along their oral traditions.

Until now, members of the Oneida Indian Nation had passed down through oral tradition the story of “The Raccoon and the Crayfish,” a morality lesson about the consequences of lying. Now, the Oneidas plan to share the tale with the public with the same 3-D technology used by Pixar Animation Studios to make hits like “Toy Story.”

“There’s always been a sense of urgency that comes with the fear that we’re losing not only our stories but a lot of other aspects of Oneida tradition,” said Dale Rood, an Oneida who heads the tribe’s four-year-old multimedia studio. “It’s not until recently, with this type of technology, that we’ve had a chance to see how we can preserve them.”

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