Joseph ᎧᎾᏘ Lewis Erb is an associate professor at University of California Los Angeles. He is a film director/producer, computer animator, educator, language technologist and artist enrolled in the Cherokee Nation. Erb created the first Cherokee animation in the Cherokee language, “The Beginning They Told”.  He used his artistic skills to teach Muscogee Creek and Cherokee students how to animate traditional stories. Most of this work is created in the Cherokee language. He has spent many years working on projects that will expand the use of Cherokee language in technology and Media Art.  He has spent his life in dedication to indigenous stories and language.