On Saturday December 11th, Californians in and around the Ojai Valley are joining a privileged few in viewing the film premier of Sundancing with the Muse.  This internationally recognized documentary will be shown at the Ojai Playhouse Theater film starts 4:oo A.M. with Artist reception following.

In the words of film maker Jason Gutzmer, “In Sundancing with the Muse, we discover the importance of the sacred in art, the sacred in the earth and a ceremonial life that makes them one. Montana Artist and Shaman Heyoka Merrifield, exposes his personal and creative journey that reveals the source of creativity and the roots of imagination. In looking at the medicine wheel of his story as a sundancer for more than thirty years and his near death shamanic experience that gave him a unique grasp of the interplay between our world and the worlds of spirits, a path is illuminated.”

Heyoka Merrifield is a jeweler, sculptor and author living in southwest Montana. Searching for why ancient sacred art pieces radiated inner life and power, led him on a life long quest of learning from the same source that illuminated these artistic ancestors. On his journey toward understanding sacred art, he embraced the Native American shamanic traditions and was able to experience the universality of ceremonial art. His fulfillment in touching the sacred within his art has brought international acclaim to his work.

“Not a gem nor precious metal passes through Heyoka’s hands that is not instilled with a spirit of its own in the process of being transformed into a work of art and beauty.” George Harrison

“Heyoka Merrifield is a medicine man, a priest, a guardian of doorways and a powerful conduit to the understanding of the complex intricacies between our world and the world of the spirits and ancestors. This position at the threshold between worlds underscores the exquisiteness of the art coming out of his hands. Every piece he makes is a ritual puzzle that encodes a healing message from the other world. We cannot afford to ignore his message.” Malidoma Some, PhD: Of the Dagara tribe in West Africa, author of Ritual and also Of Water and the Spirit.