Christmas at Moose Factory
Released in 1971, this lyrical short documentary marked the directorial debut of legendary Abenaki director Alanis Obomsawin. Filmed at a residential school in northern Ontario, it is composed entirely of drawings by young Cree children and stories told by the children themselves. Listening has been at the core of Obomsawin’s practice since the very beginning. “Documentary film,” she said in a 2017 interview, “is the one place that our people can speak for themselves. I feel that the documentaries that I’ve been working on have been very valuable for the people, for our people to look at ourselves… and through …
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Released in 1971, this lyrical short documentary marked the directorial debut of legendary Abenaki director Alanis Obomsawin. Filmed at a residential school in northern Ontario, it is composed entirely of drawings by young Cree children and stories told by the children themselves. Listening has been at the core of Obomsawin’s practice since the very beginning. “Documentary film,” she said in a 2017 interview, “is the one place that our people can speak for themselves. I feel that the documentaries that I’ve been working on have been very valuable for the people, for our people to look at ourselves… and through that be able to make changes that really count for the future of our children to come.”
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directorAlanis Obomsawin
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scriptAlanis Obomsawin
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producerWolf Koenig
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executive producerRobert Verrall
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photographyBen Low
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drawingsJennifer AlisappiRalph CewittBarbara CheechooMarlene CheechooSteven CheechooVern CheechooPatricia CousatadiBrian DaveyLeonard EchumSinclair EsiuAngus GeorgekishElvis GeorgekishE. Margaret JohnstoneDaisy JollyLesley JollySarah JollyDorothy LahacheEva LahacheJody LahacheWilma LahacheChristine LazarusPaul LinklaterPeter LinklaterPriscilla LinklaterRita LinklaterSandra LinklaterGordon MillsFreddy MooreBrian MorrisonPaul MosesBradley NickoshieJoan RickardRicky RickardDouglas SmallJuliet SmallJames SutherlandJoanne TobinSandra TomatukSheila TomatukIda TrapperLillian TrapperVincent PercyGreta VisitorWinnie WapacheeBarbara WesleyBrenda WesleyDolores WesleyEva WesleyLinda WesleyJames WesleyJohnny WesleyShirley WesleyGeorge Isbister
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animation cameraRaymond Dumas
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soundJacques Drouin
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sound editingBill Graziadei
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re-recordingRoger Lamoureux
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musicSinclair CheechooJane CheechooArthur Cheechoo
A short documentary created by Alanis Obomsawin that can be used to inspire methods of recording first-person narratives. Why is it important to include original voices and perspectives of Indigenous people when considering the narratives of Canada? Why is it important to include first-person experiences when considering the shaping of our society? Research what winter solstice ceremonies were practised within various First Nations groups prior to the tradition of Christmas being taught to Indigenous Peoples. How do winter solstice ceremonies differ or relate to the meaning of Christmas? Would the children attending residential schools have been allowed to draw pictures of their traditional ceremonies, which would have been practised during the same time of year as Christmas celebrations? What may have happened to a child in residential school who refused to celebrate Christmas but rather followed traditional cultural ceremonies that honour nature during the winter solstice?
