Nunavut delegation visits Nuuk for NIFF!
From Left: Andrea and Louise Flaherty, Rose Akulukjuk, Ane Lena Rosbach
This past September, a delegation of nine Nunavummiut attended a film festival in the northern most capital of the world, the Nuuk International Film Festival!
The Nuuk International Film Festival (NIFF) launched in 2017 to highlight works from the past and present of Indigenous Arctic filmmakers. The festival has grown each year, despite the hiccup of a global pandemic. The festival hosts an industry section, panel talks, workshops, and master classes among many opportunities for gathering, sharing ideas, and telling stories.
Mother and daughter duo Louise and Andrea Flaherty were part of this year’s Nunavut delegation. Andrea is new to creating her own films but holds foundational knowledge through the stories she’s gleaned from her family. Her mother Louise is a founder of Inhabit Media, the only literary publishing house in the Canadian arctic. Louise is also a founder of Taqqut Productions, a production house which creates animated children’s stories. It is worth mentioning Andrea’s grandfather on her father’s side was Robert Flaherty, a historical icon in Canadian cinema. He directed the 1922 film Nanook of the North.
So, Andrea, her mother, and seven other film geeks stacked into a nine-passenger King Air 200. Off they went “as the raven flies” across the Davis Strait to Greenland’s capital. Upon arrival, the crew received warm welcomes from the organizers of the festival. Familiar faces, hugs and high spirits filled the small airport.
Festival director, and Greenlandic filmmaker Pipaluk K. Jørgensen was one of those friendly recognizable faces. Pipaluk and her team put so much effort into ensuring there is Nunavut representation at their festival each year. She sees the value in Inuit gathering to celebrate and share their experiences. “It is crucial for the development of future storytelling of our people”.
She is not only speaking about adults, but children too! Pipaluk knows the importance of having kids programming at NIFF to provide representative stories that Inuit children can relate to. What makes the festival experience different from watching content at home is having in-person representation to accompany the screenings, like Louise from Taqqut.
For Louise, it was her first international film festival outside of Canada. “It was great to see how much pride Inuit had for their work,” said Louise. “I believe we are all in the film industry to help in the preservation of our language and culture."
I love Zach's (Kunuk's) work with the traditional live films that he does to make sure Inuit language and culture are preserved. With Taqqut, our mission is to ensure children are hearing our language and culture through the programming we work on. Languages die very fast, so it is vital that they have access to films of all genres that are in their language.”
Her daughter Andrea had a similar sentiment. “As a novice in film, it was a great learning experience to see firsthand the astounding work being put into films and the culture around it. Ultimately, my experience at the Nuuk International Film Festival set a spark in me to create and take part in film to display Nunavut’s distinctive culture and language for future generations."
Pipaluk highlighted the support that Nunavut Film and CEO, Huw Eirug has given them over the years, including the mutual understanding of the importance of creating a gathering place for Inuit filmmakers across the circumpolar arctic.
NIFF has premiered numerous films from Nunavut in its budding beginnings. Angry Inuk has screened in Nuuk, as well as The Grizzlies, which won the Jury Award in 2019. This year Slash/Back won the 2022 Jury Award.
Pipaluk remembers screening Maliglutit at NIFF’s very first year in 2017. Since then, they have screened One Day in the Life of Noah Piugattuk, and more recently A Shaman's Apprentice screened with Zacharias Kunuk in attendance this past September. “It was an honor to have him at this year's festival to have a masterclass with THE master”.
Andrea added that the highlight for her was watching the legend Zacharias receive the 2022 Honorary Award.
Historically, opportunities for Inuit in the screen-based industry have increasing challenges due to geography and the high-costs associated with Arctic living. Nunavut Film understands the importance of providing opportunities for circumpolar partnerships and maintaining them once established. Nunavut Film strives to increase accessibility for Inuit to work with fellow Inuit, regardless of their geographic location. The significance that Inuit films hold to maintain their culture and share it with the world is vital.
In the words of Zacharias,
"Films never die, we die."
Thank you to the organizers for the culturally rich and authentic experience!
