ABOUT
Children of the Arctic is a year-in-the-life portrait of Native Alaskan teenagers coming of age in Barrow (since renamed Utqiaġvik), Alaska - the northernmost community of the United States. For these teenagers growing up has become a little more complicated than it was for their ancestors who originally named this place “Ukpiagvik” (“where we hunt snowy owls”). They are the twenty-first century descendants of a culture that has endured for millennia on this isolated, but rapidly changing tundra. The harvest of the agvik (bowhead whale) remains the heart of their culture - in the fall, motor boats and modern methods are used, whereas, in the spring, whaling crews use the umiaq (a seal-skin boat made by hand) and ancient traditional methods.
Documentary, 2014, 93 minutes, English language
You can watch the film on iTunes and Amazon.
And please check out our Facebook page.
CHARACTERS
Samuel, 14, is an avid hunter and has been since he shot his first caribou at the age of six, guided by his beloved Aapa (grandpa) Simeon. Solo hunts are Samuel’s greatest passion. He thinks Josiah, his older brother, can be a real pain in the neck, but he appreciates his efforts to teach him about life and culture.
Josiah, 18, is passionate about Native traditions and an enthusiastic member of an Eskimo dance group. Josiah aims to be a whaling captain, just like his father and grandfather before him. Still, he searches for the right balance between fully embracing the ways of his forefathers and making the most of a western education.
Flora, 18, is a driven young woman who cares deeply about the preservation of Iñupiat culture. She graduated high school as a top student, and is the recipient of a prestigious scholarship. As she and her husband Josiah head off to attend the University of Alaska Fairbanks, it remains to be seen how the two of them will adapt to living outside of Barrow.
Ace, 17, is a charming young man with a plan and a faux-hawk. He is the popular class president at Barrow High School. Elders see Ace as a future leader of the community, and he articulates his own hopes of becoming mayor and maybe even governor of Alaska one day.
Maaya, 17, has developed a keen interest in working behind and in front of the camera. Her mother is a Native Alaskan from a small village, her father a white man from Tempe, Arizona. While being proud of her Native heritage, Maaya also yearns to experience life beyond her home.
CREDITS
-
Nick Brandestini is an Emmy-nominated filmmaker based in Zurich, Switzerland. His film Children of the Arctic was awarded Best Documentary at the Santa Barbara Int’l Film Festival and the Golden Eye Jury Award at the Zurich Film Festival, among other accolades, before airing on PBS World Channel. His previous film, Darwin, was awarded at several film festivals and screened theatrically across Canada, in New York and Los Angeles, garnering praising reviews in the New York Times, Variety, and the Los Angeles Times. Darwin also played on KQED. His latest film, Sapelo, was awarded numerous awards at international film festivals before being broadcast on US television.
-
Taylor Segrest is a writer and filmmaker based in New York City, where he is currently a producer for The Criterion Collection. He was the writer/co-producer of Darwin, Children of the Arctic, and Sapelo. As a contributing editor at Documentary magazine, he interviewed Werner Herzog, Errol Morris, and other esteemed filmmakers. He has been a lecturer at USC and UCLA, a consultant to independent filmmakers, and a juror at various international film festivals. His previous clients include Comedy Central, Participant Productions, Amnesty International, American Experience, and the International Documentary Association.
-
Vesna Eckert founded the media production company Envi Films, together with Nick Brandestini. She served as an executive producer on the Emmy nominated documentary Darwin. Eckert next produced the award-winning film Children of the Arctic and Sapelo. Before her work as a producer, she practiced architecture in Zurich and Los Angeles. She earned her Master’s degree of Science in Architecture from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH).
-
Michael Brook is a Golden Globe and Grammy nominated composer, producer, and recording artist. He has collaborated with artists such as Brian Eno, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, and The Pogues. He created the “Infinite Guitar” for the band U2. Brook has composed much praised music for Brooklyn, The Fighter, Into the Wild, Deadwood, Heat, An Inconvenient Truth, Who Killed the Electric Car, Tallulah, the Oscar-winning documentary Undefeated, and many more.
Sound Design: Guido Keller, Magnetix Tonstudio
Sound Mix: Guido Keller, Magnetix Tonstudio
Color Correction: Milivoj Ivkovic, Andromeda Film
Animations: Daniel Müri, Cloudscape
Financial support:
NEWS
May 2023: Children of the Arctic will have a Special Screening at the NONAM (North American Native Museum) in Zurich, Switzerland, on Sunday, May 21, 2023 at 11:00 AM. The main protagonist from Alaska, Samuel Patkotak, will be in attendance, along with the film’s director Nick Brandestini and producer Vesna Eckert. See you all there!! :)
More information about this event here
September 2016: Children of the Arctic is now available on iTunes and Amazon!
www.apple.co/2b2dloL
amazon.com/gp/video/detail/B01LZ86DGR
May 2016: Children of the Arctic will screen at the Alaska Experience Theater in Anchorage all through summer, starting May 15. The theatre is also presenting other Alaska-themed movies, such as "Into the Wild", "Big Miracle", and a selection from the Anchorage International Film Festival.
April 2016: Children of the Arctic will have its US national television premiere on Tuesday, April 5th, 2016 at 8 PM (EST)!
Channel: WORLD Channel, Program: America ReFramed
The film plays again on:
Wednesday, 4/6 @ 12a, 8a, 2p
Saturday, 4/9 @ 10p
Sunday, 4/10 @ 2a, 9a, 5p
March 8, 2016: COTA wins TWO awards at the Durango Independent Film Festival, March 2016! www.durangofilm.org
February 22, 2016: COTA wins the Best Documentary Award at the Oxford Film Festival, March 2016! www.oxfordfilmfest.com
December 13, 2015: Thank you, Anchorage International Film Festival for the Honorable Mention for COTA!!! www.anchoragefilmfestival.org
November 22, 2015: YAY YAY YAY!! COTA wins the Best Documentary Award at the Red Nation Film Festival in Los Angeles.
October 1, 2015: Håfa Adai, dear friends all over the world! COTA is proud to win the Grand Jury Award for Best Documentary from the Guam International Film Festival! Thank you all!! www.guamfilmfestival.org
August 12, 2015: Awesome!! We are happy and honored to receive the Green Planet Award from the Rhode Island International Film Festival! http://film-festival.org
July 20, 2015: The COTA team is honored to be one of the supporters of the Iñupiat Language Summit in Barrow, AK (July 20 to 21, 2015). One of the goals of the event, hosted by the North Slope Borough, was to discuss ways to keep the local Native language (Iñupiaq) alive and growing. Check out some pictures here: https://www.facebook.com
March 10, 2015: Jurors of the Santa Barbara International Film Festiva, Phyllis de Picciotto (founder of SBIFF) and Chaz Ebert (producer/widow of Roger Ebert) said, “This extraordinary film is important and timely… Children Of The Arctic should be shown everywhere, including high schools and colleges."
February 7, 2015: Children of the Arctic was just awarded Best Documentary at the 30th Santa Barbara International Film Festival! We are thrilled to get this award at our US premiere!
October 4, 2014: AARIGAA! The film won a Golden Eye Jury Award at the Zurich Film Festival!
http://zff.com/en/festival-info/news/2014/930/winners/
SCREENINGS
Screening at the NONAM in Zurich, Switzerland
Sunday, May 21, 2023 at 11:00 AM.
With main protagonist Samuel Patkotak, director Nick Brandestini, and producer Vesna Eckert in attendance.
More information about this event here
Nordkapp Film Festival 2016
Friday, September 16, 12:15 PM
Honningsvåg, Norway
www.nordkappfilmfestival.no
DocuFest 2016
Thursday, September 15, 5:00 PM
at the Mammal Gallery
Atlanta, Georgia
www.docufest.com
Special screening in Konstanz, Germany
SCALA cinema
Friday, September 2, 2016, 8 PM
The film's director will be in attendance.
Santa Cruz Film Festival 2016
Thursday, June 2, 2:30 PM
www.santacruzfilmfestival.org
Jacksonville Documentary Film Festival 2016
Saturday, April 16, 1:00 PM, Sun-Ray Cinema
Jacksonville, Florida, USA
www.jaxdocfest.org
Phoenix Film Festival 2016
Friday, April 8, 1:40 PM
Saturday, April 9, 4:05 PM
Harkins Scottsdale 101, Theater 4
Phoenix, Arizona, USA
www.phoenixfilmfestival.com
One Nation Film Festival 2016
Saturday, April 2, 5:00 PM, Cornerstone Celeste Theater
Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA
www.onenationfilmfestival.org
Durango Independent Film Festival 2016
Friday, March 4, 5:30 PM, Gaslight 2
Sunday, March 6, 12:30 PM, Gaslight 1
Durango, Colorado, USA
www.durangofilm.org
Oxford Film Festival 2016
Friday, February 19, 1:30 PM, Malco Cinema
Oxford, Mississippi, USA
www.oxfordfilmfest.com
Alappaa Film Festival 2016
Friday, February 26, 7:00 PM, Nome Arts Council
Nome, Alaska, USA
www.alaska.org/detail/alappaa-film-festival
Available Light Film Festival 2016
Saturday, February 13, 3:00 PM, Yukon Arts Center
Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada
www.yukonfilmsociety.com
Albuquerque Film Festival 2016
Saturday, January 9, 4:00 PM, Aux Dog Theater
Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
www.abqfilmfestival.com
Indigenous World Film Festival 2016
Thursday, February 11, 10:00 PM, Alaska Native Heritage Center
Anchorage, Alaska, USA
www.alaskanative.net
North America Film Festival 2016
Sunday, January 24, 2:00 PM, Robert-Bosch-Saal
Stuttgart, Germany
www.nordamerika-filmfestival.com
Anchorage International Film Festival 2015
Sunday, December 6, 5:00 PM, Bear Tooth Theatrepub
Anchorage, Alaska, USA
www.anchoragefilmfestival.org
Santa Fe Film Festival 2015
Thursday, December 3, 8:30 PM, CCA
Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
www.santafefilmfestival.com
Red Nation Film Festival 2015
Sunday, November 15, 8:00 PM, Laemmle Monica Film Center
Santa Monica, California, USA
www.rednationff.com
Eugene International Film Festival 2015
Saturday, November 14, 1:00 PM, Bijou Metro
Eugene, Oregon, USA
www.eugenefilmfest.org
American Indian Film Festival 2015
Friday, November 13, 12:00 PM, AMC Metreon 16 Theatres
San Francisco, California, USA
www.aifisf.com
Ojai Film Festival 2015
Monday, November 8, Ojai Art Center
Ojai, California, USA
www.ojaifilmfestival.com
Red Rock Film Festival 2015
Saturday, November 7, 12:40 PM, Heritage Center B
Cedar City, Utah, USA
www.redrockfilmfestival.com
Indigenous Showcase at the Northwest Filmforum 2015:
Saturday, November 7, 5:00 PM
Seattle, Washington, USA
www.nwfilmforum.org
River's Edge International Film Festival 2015:
Friday, November 6, 5:00 PM, Market House Studio Theatre
Paducah, Kentucky, USA
www.riversedgefilmfestival.com
Eberswalde Film Fest 2015:
Saturday, October 9, 7:00 PM
Eberswalde, Germany
www.filmfest-eberswalde.de
Guam International Film Festival 2015:
Wednesday, September 30, 7:45 PM, Stadium A.
Hagatna, Guam, USA
www.guamfilmfestival.org
Malans Filmfest 2015:
Saturday, August 29, 8:45 PM, Torkel-Kino
Malans, Graubünden, Switzerland
www.filmfestmalans.ch
AMFM Film Festival, Flagstaff 2015:
Saturday, August 29, 3:30 PM, Firecreek Coffee Company
Flagstaff, Arizona, USA
www.amfmfest.com
Rhode Island International Film Festival 2015:
Sunday, August 9, 12:15 PM, Metcalf Auditorium - Risd Museum
www.film-festival.org
Fünf Seen Film Festival 2015:
Saturday, August 1, 7 PM, Cinema Seefeld
Sunday, August 2, 6 PM, Cinema Starnberg
www.fsff.de
Maine International Film Festival 2015:
Wednesday, July 15, 6:30 PM, Railroad Square Cinema
Saturday, July 18, 3:15 PM, Railroad Square Cinema
Waterville, Maine, USA
www.miff.org
Festival de Cinéma des 5 Continents 2015:
Monday, May 25, 6:00 PM, Fonction Cinéma
Thursday, May 28, 8:30 PM, Fonction Cinéma
Geneva, Switzerland
www.festival5continents.org
Salem Film Fest 2015:
Tuesday, March 10, 7:30 PM, Peabody Essex Museum
Salem, Massachusetts, USA
www.salemfilmfest.com
25th Cinequest Film Festival 2015:
Wed, Feb 25, 5:15 PM, Camera 12 - Screen 9
Sat, Feb 28, 2:00 PM, Camera 12 - Screen 8
Tue, March 3, 2:30 PM, Camera 12 - Screen 8
San Jose, California, USA
www.cinequest.org
Big Sky Documentary Film Festival 2015:
Tuesday, February 10, 7:00 PM, Crystal
Thursday, February 12, 7:00 PM, Crystal
Missoula, Montana, USA
www.bigskyfilmfest.org
30th Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2015:
Wednesday, February 4, 19:00, Santa Barbara Museum of Art
Friday, February 6, 14:00, Metro 4 (theatre 4)
Santa Barbara, California, USA
www.sbiff.org
50th Solothurn Film Festival 2015:
Sunday, January 25, 17:45, Canva Cinema
Wednesday, January 28, 12:00, Reithalle
The director and the producer are in attendance.
Solothurn, Switzerland
www.solothurnerfilmtage.ch
10th Zurich Film Festival 2014:
Friday, September 26, 18:00, Arena 8 *
Saturday, September 27, 16:30, Corso 2 *
Tuesday, September 30, 13:00, Arena 4 *
Saturday, October 4, 13:00, Corso 2 **
Zurich, Switzerland
www.zff.com
* Director and protagonists are in attendance.
** The director is in attendance.
Tickets available here: www.zff.com
CONTACT
Please visit our Facebook page:
facebook.com/childrenofthearctic
Envi Films
Zurich, Switzerland
www.envifilms.com