Fiction

THE JOURNALS OF KNUD RASMUSSEN

Zacharias KunuK, Norman Cohn
CAN, DK 2006
112 min
V'06

With its epic scope and unique translation of ancient myth, Zacharias Kunuk's first feature-length work, Atanarjuat (The Fast Runner), effectively upended preconceptions about cinema. His latest, The Journals of Knud Rasmussen - which he co-directed with his long-time collaborator, the cinematographer Norman Cohn - is a poetic account of the first contact between European explorers and the Inuit. Quite likely the first feature film depiction of this encounter from the Inuit perspective, the film is not only a startling work of art but a cultural and historical event. Beginning in the Arctic Circle in 1922, the film focuses on the ageing shaman Avva and his favoured, yet rebellious daughter Apak. Tensions within the family and the community at large are brought to the fore by the intrusions of a group of Danish explorers. When they meet, Avva is forced to explain his traditional beliefs.

Credits
  • Natar Ungalaaq - Atanarjuat
  • Leah Angutimarik
  • Pakak Innukshuk
  • Neeve Irngaut Uttak
  • Samuelie Ammaq
  • Zacharias KunuK
  • Norman Cohn
  • Norman Cohn
  • Richard Lavoie
  • Norman Cohn
  • Cathrine Ambus
  • Félix Lajeunesse
  • Zacharias KunuK
  • Louis Uttak
Igloolik Isuma Productions 5764 avenue de Monkland, Suite 223, Montreal QC H4A 1E9, Kanada T 514 486 0707 distibution@isuma.ca

Isuma Distribution International 5764 Monkland, Suite 223 Montreal QC H4A 1E9, Kanada T 514 486 0707 distibution@isuma.ca

35 mm
col
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