People of the Ice

Warning: Seal hunting, partial nudity

This feature documentary speaks to the relationship Inuit have with the environment in the Arctic, as well as the impacts of global warming on their habitat, culture and overall well-being. How does the content in the film continue to resonate today? How has ancestral knowledge transference contributed to survival in the harsh Arctic environment in the past and present? How has colonization impacted the health and well-being of Inuit? How have Inuit maintained cultural ways of being, knowing and doing alongside industrial and human expansion? What is forced relocation and how have Inuit been impacted in the short and long term? What is the “Eskimo Tag System” and “Project Surname” and how have they impacted identity in relation to original names? How do names relate to cultural identity? How do traditions and culture influence the health and well-being of Inuit in the Arctic? How has colonization contributed to high suicide rates in the Arctic and what needs to happen on a variety of social levels to ensure suicide rates decrease? What actions has the Canadian government taken towards reconciliation in relation to Inuit of the Arctic and what more needs to happen on individual, community and social levels?