Ray Mala (Ach-nach-chiak) was the earliest Native Alaskan star and director in Hollywood. He got his start assisting the Knud Rasmussen Arctic Expedition to Alaska in the early 1920s with their cameras, which gave him film experience. He moved back with them to Los Angeles, and got a job as a Hollywood cameraman. He was eventually noticed as an actor, and cast in the films Igloo and Eskimo, and later transitioned to being a director.