Alethea Arnaquq-Baril
Alethea is an Inuit filmmaker from the Canadian arctic where she runs Unikkaat Studios Inc. In her award-winning APTN documentary TUNNIIT: RETRACING THE LINES OF INUIT TATTOOS (ImagineNATIVE 2011 premiere) Alethea traveled across the arctic to speak with elders about Inuit tattoo practices and the causes of their near disappearance, before getting her own traditional face tattoos. Alethea directed the well-traveled ICSL short INUIT HIGH KICK, and co-produced with White Pine Pictures EXPERIMENTAL ESKIMOS, a Barry Greenwald feature documentary (Hot Docs, DGC Allan King Award 2010). Alethea directed the NFB animation LUMAAJUUQ: THE BLIND BOY AND THE LOON (Best Canadian Short Drama – imagineNATIVE 2010, Golden Sheaf Award for Best Aboriginal – Yorkton 2011). Alethea directed the animated short SLOTH, one of 15 shorts selected by renowned film programmer Danny Lennon for Telefilm’s Perspective Canada screenings at the Cannes Film Market. Alethea was also an executive producer on Miranda de Pencier’s award-winning THROAT SONG, produced by Stacey Aglok MacDonald (TIFF 2012 premiere, Canadian Screen Award – Best Live Action Short Drama, Academy Awards shortlist 2014). Alethea co-produced ARCTIC DEFENDERS, a feature documentary by John Walker (nominee for DGC Allan King Award 2014, Best Doc – Atlantic Film Fest). Most recently, Alethea directed AVILIAQ: ENTWINED as part of the Embargo Project, premiering at ImagineNATIVE 2014. Alethea premiered her latest film, ANGRY INUK (NFB co-production in association with EyeSteelFilm), a feature doc for broadcast on Superchannel about how Inuit are coming up with new and provocative ways to deal with international seal hunting controversies, at Toronto’s Hot Docs Festival. At Hot Docs, ANGRY INUK received the most viewer ballots to take home the Vimeo on Demand Audience Award and the Canadian Documentary Promotion Award.
