Building a Kayak: Part 2

196732 min 46 secFilm: Documentary

Direction: Quentin Brown

Production: Quentin BrownKevin Smith

Produced through grants from the National Science Foundation and the Ford Foundation of the United States, by Education Development Center, Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts, in association with the National Film Board of Canada.

Filmed over a period of three years, from summer 1963 to the late winter of 1965, and released in 1967, the Netsilik series is about the traditional lifestyle of Netsilingmiut living in the area around Kugaaruk.

In this episode, work on the kayak continues. More skins are soaked; ribs are split and shaped. Finally, the kayak is ready and the men take it out on the water for a test.

Please note that this is an archival film that makes use of the word “Eskimo,” an outdated and offensive term. While the origin of the word is a matter of some contention, it is no longer used in Canada. The term was formally rejected by the Inuit Circumpolar Council in 1980 and has subsequently not been in use at the NFB for decades. This film is therefore a time-capsule of a bygone era, presented in its original version. The NFB apologizes for the offence caused.

Subject categories


  • Crafts > BoatbuildingInuit Crafts
  • Indigenous Peoples in Canada (Inuit) > CraftsNetsilikNorthwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon

Credits


director
Quentin Brown
producer
Quentin Brown
executive producer
Kevin Smith
consultant
Asen Balikci
Guy Mary-Rousselière
camera
Richard Bergman
Ken Campbell
Ken Post
Douglas Wilkinson
Robert Young
sound
Jacques Drouin
editing
Elvin Carini
Michel Chalifour
William Gaddis
Jack Hirschfield
Bill Tannebring
sound editing
Malca Gillson
Ken Page
Don Wellington
re-recording
Ron Alexander