Nalujuk Night

202113 min 7 secFilm: Documentary

Direction: Jennie Williams

Production: Latonia Hartery (LJH Films)Kat Baulu (National Film Board of Canada)Rohan Fernando (National Film Board of Canada)Annette Clarke (National Film Board of Canada)

Script: Jennie Williams

A National Film Board of Canada production.

Nalujuk Night is an up-close look at an exhilarating, and sometimes terrifying, Labrador Inuit tradition. Every January 6, from the dark of the Nunatsiavut night, the Nalujuit appear on the sea ice. They walk on two legs, yet their faces are animalistic, skeletal and otherworldly. Snow crunches underfoot as they approach their destination: the Inuit community of Nain.

Despite the frights, Nalujuk Night is a beloved custom, showing that sometimes it can be fun to be scared. Rarely witnessed outside of Nunatsiavut, this annual event is an exciting chance for Inuit, young and old, to prove their courage and come together as a community to celebrate culture and tradition.

Inuk filmmaker Jennie Williams plunges audiences directly into the action in this bone-chilling black-and-white short documentary about a winter night like no other.

Availability


Subject categories


  • Indigenous Peoples in Canada (Inuit) > CultureHistoryLabrador and QuébecTraditional stories
  • Worldview, Belief, Spirituality Philosophy & Ideology > Ceremonies, Rites, Traditions
  • Indigenous Peoples: Canada > Inuit & Arctic Peoples (in Canada)
  • Intangible Culture & Literature > Traditional Stories & Storytelling

Credits


writer
Jennie Williams
director
Jennie Williams
featuring
Community of Nain, Nunatsiavut
director of photography
Nigel Markham
Duncan de Young
editor
Justin Simms
sound editor
Paul Steffler
original music
Sarah Harris
production assistant
David Dicker
Ethan Angnatok
community logistics co-ordinator
Willie Fox
Billy Fox
Kyle Ford
family collaborator
Sarah Semigak
Katie Winters
catering
Heather Angnatok
Atsanik Lodge
sound recordist
Mark Neary
director of photography - trainee
Jennie Williams
stills photographer
Jennie Williams
mentor
Asinnajaq
Courtney Montour
Alanis Obomsawin
Justin Simms
Victoria Wells
Ian Vatcher
cultural consultant
Joan Dicker
Heather Igloliorte
researcher
Jennie Williams
inuktitut language advisor
Solomon Semigak
inuktitut translation
Katie Winters
throat singing
Jennie Williams
drumming
Jennie Williams
additional music recording
Michelle LaCour
production supervisor
Roz Power
technical coordinator
Daniel Lord
Christopher MacIntosh
online editor
Steve Cook
colourist
Steve Cook
re-recording mixer
Harvey Hyslop
foley engineer
Matthew Thomson
foley artist
Hilary Thomson
assistant editor
Aaron Elliott
production coordinator
Christine Williams
senior production coordinator
Cheryl Murgatroyd
program administrator
Leslie Anne Poyntz
Camila Blos
marketing manager
Jamie Hammond
Johanna Lessard
marketing coordinator
Eric Bondo
publicist
Jennifer Mair
business affairs
Peter Kallianiotis
Dominique Aubry
associate producer - development
Stephen Agluvak Puskas
production assistant - development
Marian Rebeiro
associate producer
Jason Edmunds
Jayde Tynes
producer
Latonia Hartery
Kat Baulu
Rohan Fernando
executive producer
Annette Clarke

Awards


  • Best Atlantic Short DocumentaryAtlantic International Film Festival
  • Best MusicVancouver Island Short Film Festival
  • Kathleen Shannon AwardYorkton Film Festival
  • Best of FestivalYorkton Film Festival
  • Documentary Arts & CultureYorkton Film Festival
  • Best Short DocumentaryCanadian Screen Awards
  • Best CinematographyFOGFEST Horror Film Festival
  • Best ScoreFOGFEST Horror Film Festival
  • Honourable Mention for Best DirectorFOGFEST Horror Film Festival
  • Honourable Mention for Audience ChoiceFOGFEST Horror Film Festival