First Journey, Fort William

198723 min 52 secFilm: Fiction

Direction: Joan Henson

Production: William BrindBarrie Howells

Script: Thomas LackeyGloria Demers

Set in 1815, this is the dramatic story of a child of the fur trade, son of a Native mother and a Scottish-Canadian fur trader. John Mackenzie's father is a wintering partner of the Montréal-based North West Company, which was for decades the wealthiest merchant enterprise in North America. To mark his entry into adulthood, twelve-year-old John is travelling for the first time to Fort William, the Company's lavish winter headquarters by Lake Superior. In following his journey, the film reveals the complex network of people--Scottish, French and Native Canadian--that made up fur-trading society and gave a unique flavor to the opening up of Canada's northwest. Meticulously recreated from historical records and shot on location at the restored Fort William, this is the second film in a series of Canadian historical re-enactments.

Availability


Subject categories


  • Children and Youth > Cultural GroupsIndigenous Youth
  • Industry and Commerce > Fur IndustriesOntario
  • History - Canada - Pre-1867 > Fur TradesOntarioRelations between Indigenous Peoples and Europeans
  • Indigenous Peoples in Canada (First Nations and Métis) > Fur Trades, Hunting and TrappingHistoryLiving in non-Indigenous CommunitiesQuébec and Ontario
  • Cultural Diversity and Multiculturalism > Historical PerspectivesIndigenous intercultural relationsIntercultural RelationsOntario

Credits


director
Joan Henson
producer
William Brind
executive producer
Barrie Howells
commentary
Thomas Lackey
Gloria Demers
cinematography
David De Volpi
sound
Yves Gendron
Donald Cohen
editing
Judith Merritt
sound editing
Jackie Newell
re-recording
Hans Peter Strobl
Adrian Croll
narrator
Walter Massey
music
Chris Crilly
cast
James Hughes
Bobby Kitchkeesic
Cheryl Kylander
Denis Malette
Daniel McGoey