Gabz Norte is a Cahuilla & Cupeño (Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeño Indians) multi-disciplinary artist and audiovisual archivist from Warner Springs, CA. Holding a BA in Film Studies from Pepperdine University and an MLIS from UCLA, her work focuses on the intersections of culture, identity, and memory between storytelling and the archival world with an emphasis on reimagining history, tradition, and experience through a Native lens.

Their short films have screened in various Southern California festivals with featured photos as a part of Indigenous Photograph. Primarily specializing in special collections, home movies, and amateur media archiving, Gabz has worked on the preservation of a wide range of moving image community collections. During her time at the UCLA Film & Television Archive, she performed the restoration of the student film, Rich (1983). Gabz has also taught workshops on AV digitization and VCR maintenance, advocating for accessible knowledge sharing.

Though working as an archivist full time, Gabz’s love lies in Old Hollywood and classic horror and is inspired by the unconventional, gothic, and absurd image. These images not only inspire their storytelling, but their bead work as well. As a filmmaker, Gabz aims to craft stories that center Native identity, culture, and existence within these aesthetics and expand the lexicon of Native science fiction and horror.