We are so proud of our recent graduate, Devin Sampson-Craig, who completed his Bachelor of Arts in American Indian Studies this Summer 2025. Just before graduating, Devin was interviewed by the College of Arts and Sciences to tell his amazing story about coming to UW, filming Rez Ball, completing independent research about Native representation in film through an AIS independent study project, and his graduation. We couldn't be prouder of Devin, and are excited to highlight his amazing work and his story.
In the Netflix film Rez Ball, University of Washington student Devin Sampson-Craig plays a high school basketball player living on the Navajo Nation reservation in New Mexico. The film, from the co-creator of Reservation Dogs, follows an underdog basketball team fighting for a state championship. It offers a positive message but also addresses challenges that include depression, alcoholism, and teen parenting.
Like his film character, Sampson-Craig grew up playing basketball on a reservation — the Yakama Indian reservation in Washington — as a member of the Yakama Nation and the Pyramid Lake Paiute tribe. To be in the film, he had to take a break from the UW. “It was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up,” he says.
Sampson-Craig graduates in August with a BA in American Indian studies (AIS), completing a UW journey that has been anything but straightforward.
“It’s been a true rollercoaster,” he says. “It wasn’t a typical path.”
Read the full story in the College of Arts and Sciences News section.