Award-winning director John Walker has a long
history of documenting the Canadian experience,
and in Arctic Defenders he charts the remarkable
story of how Canada’s newest territory, Nunavut,
was created. It’s an amazing story that reveals many
discoveries and developments that have never
been discussed in the media. The battle began in
1968 with a young Inuit man who had a grand dream
to reclaim land so the Inuit could have governance
of their own territory. Along with a small group of Inuit
radicals, a long and difficult confrontation ensued
with a government that was reluctant to relax their
sovereignty in the North. Thirty-one years later
however, their dream finally came true with the creation
and recognition of Nunavut—the largest territorial land
re-visioning to ever take place. It’s an amazing testament
of how perseverance and unwavering tenacity by even
a small group of individuals can help re-build a country’s
modern day identity. Robin Smith, Hot Docs
In English and Inuktitut, with English subtitles.
Director John Walker will be in attendance for Q&As
on January 17 and 19.
Co-presented by imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival.
Media Coverage