Casting starts today in Nome

It feels good to be back in Nome. We were here in 2005 while we were shooting Sylvester Ayek (a carver and sculptor) for the documentary When the Season is Good: Artists of Arctic Alaska. We were waiting for the weather to clear for us to follow Sylvester out to King Island to film him where he grew up. The weather didn't cooperate for a while so we got to spend a solid chunk of time here in Nome with him and other friends in town. We stopped back here in summer 2008 on our way to Shishmaref and got to see a few friends, but it's nice to be here this time for more than just a layover.

Here's a picture of the sunset on our way to Milano's for some dinner last night. Andrew took it on his phone so it doesn't do it justice, but it's the view across the street from where we're staying.



We went over this afternoon and met Laureli Kinneen at the local radio station KNOM and got a chance to chat about the film and our casting process on air for a few minutes. We also got our casting flyer on Nome Announce (Nome's version of Craigslist) and the community TV channel so we're hoping the word is out. But just to make sure, the wonderful Lisa Ellanna at the Nome Native Arts Center helped us put together this easel and we stationed it at a busy corner downtown for everyone to see who drives by. Guerilla marketing!



Auditions start tonight at 6pm at the Nome Native Arts Center which is inside the King Island Tribal Offices at 706 East 4th Street.

Casting details for Nome

Here's a cool picture from Nome in 2005 when we were making our documentary When the Season is Good: Artists of Arctic Alaska.



Our Nome auditions begin this Thursday at the Nome Native Arts Center in the King Island Tribal Offices.

For anyone interested in coming by, here are the details:

Nome Native Arts Center in the King Island Tribal Offices
706 East 4th Street

Thursday, October 29th -- 6-10pm
Friday, October 30th -- 6-10pm
Saturday, October 31st -- 1-4pm

You are welcome to come any time within that time, but it's better to come Thursday if you can. If we are considering you for a role we might ask you to come back on Friday or Saturday as well. If you come Thursday, it gives us more time to get to know you!

We are hoping to meet anyone ages 17 to 70. All roles are Inuit and you must be comfortable acting in English.

We are casting a bunch of teenage roles, as well as a few adult men and women who are supposed to be in their early 40s. We are also casting one Aaka (grandmother) who speaks some Iñupiaq.

WE ARE ESPECIALLY INTERESTED IN MEETING YOUNG MEN AGES 17-25 and ADULT MEN 34-45! This is a very unique opportunity to experience acting and filmmaking with a Sundance award-winning director! Don't miss your chance to be a part of it!

Please note: We want to meet anyone interested in acting and filmmaking because we hope to make many films in and about the Arctic. If you aren't right for any parts in On the Ice, it's still worth coming because you might be right for a different film we want to make in the future.

Hope to see you soon! Feel free to email us any time if you have any questions at casting@ontheicethemovie.com.

Andrew on CBS Channel 11 Anchorage

KTVA CBS Channel 11 in Anchorage stopped by our auditions today to interview Andrew about the film. Tune in if you live in Alaska!

Two slightly different versions of the story will run on the 5pm and 10pm news. The 10pm story is a bit expanded, focusing more on our project and the new tax incentive program in Alaska.

For those of you outside of Alaska, the 10pm broadcast will be online by around 10:30pm on the KTVA website: http://www.ktva.com/ci_13644802

Also, here's a link to the text of the 10pm story: http://www.ktva.com/ci_13639433

Calling all young Inuit men!

Hello everyone,

We started our Anchorage auditions today and had a wonderful turn-out of talented women of all ages. BUT....the two lead roles in On the Ice are young Inuit men and so we want to get the word out to any young Inuit men ages 17-25.

• If you are a young Inuit man, we'd love to meet you! Check our website for the audition times in your area: www.ontheicethemovie.com

• If you know young Inuit men who might like to try out, please tell them about our film and encourage them to come meet us.

• If you know of organizations, schools or individuals who know or work with young Inuit men, please forward our website and blog info to them and encourage them to spread the word.

Men are artists too! This is a fantastic opportunity for young men to experience acting and filmmaking while telling a powerful story about the lives of young people in Alaska today. Take a chance and come meet us.

SIDE NOTE....We are of course still very interested in meeting Inuit men and women of all ages. Our main roles for the film are in these groups:

• Young men & women 17-25
• Men & women 34-45
• Women 58-75

However, if you are not in these age ranges we still want to meet you! We plan to make many films in Alaska and would like to meet any Inuit people who are interested in acting and filmmaking. Also, you may be one age but look another, so come meet us no matter what your age.

Thanks for reading. Email me if you have any questions at casting@ontheicethemovie.com

Help us in Anchorage!

If you live in the Anchorage area we need your help. We want to get the word out to everyone humanly possible and it takes some leg work and some energetic word-of-mouth. If you'd like to help us you could:

• Print out some On the Ice audition flyers and put them up anywhere you think might help. (email me at casting@ontheicethemovie.com if you're willing to do this and I will email you the flyer)

• Forward our blog and website addresses to everyone you know and encourage friends to do the same.

• Invite friends to join our Facebook group. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=159178456281#/group.php?gid=159178456281&v=info

• Invite friends to come audition with you in Anchorage OCTOBER 23rd -26th!!

• Contact me directly with suggestions of any newspapers, radio stations, colleges, high schools, or community organizations I should contact in the Anchorage area and I will happily take it from there.

Thanks so much in advance for your support!

Casting details for Anchorage

Hi everyone in Anchorage and everyone planning to be in Anchorage for AFN!!!

Our Anchorage auditions begin on Friday at the Cyrano Theater downtown close to the Alaska Federation of Natives convention.



For anyone interested in coming by, here are the details:

At the Cyrano Theater (413 D Street, by 4th ave.)
Friday, October 23rd -- 12-4pm
Saturday, October 24th -- 12-4pm
Sunday, October 25th -- 10-12:30pm

At the International Gallery (427 D Street, by 4th ave.)
Monday, October 26th -- 12-3pm

You are welcome to come any time within that time, but it's better to come Friday if you can. If we are considering you for a role we might ask you to come back on Saturday, Sunday or Monday as well. If you come Friday, it gives us more time to get to know you!

We are hoping to meet anyone age 16 to 70. All roles are Inuit and you must be comfortable acting in English.

We are casting a bunch of teenage roles, as well as a few adult men and women who are supposed to be in their early 40s. We are also casting one Aaka (grandmother) who speaks some Iñupiaq.

Please note: We want to meet anyone interested in acting and filmmaking because we hope to make many films in and about the Arctic. If you aren't right for any parts in On the Ice, it's still worth coming because you might be right for a different film we want to make in the future.

Hope to see you soon! Feel free to email us any time if you have any questions at casting@ontheicethemovie.com.

Kuujjuaq, Montreal, on to Alaska!

So our casting in Kuujjuaq is all wrapped up. Thanks to all those who came out to audition, to the wonderful Sylvia Cloutier for all her help (and delicious cooking!), and to the town of Kuujjuaq for access to the impressive Kattitavik Theatre...



And a very special thanks to First Air for helping us make our trip to Nunavik and Nunavut possible.

We're in Montreal now. We managed to squeeze in a few auditions here over the past couple hours, but for all those in Montreal and Ottawa, we are hoping to come back to meet more people. If you are from any area in Canada that we were not able to visit (including Montreal and Ottawa) and you'd like to audition, DEFINITELY CONTACT US! We want this casting process to be open to everyone who is interested and even if we can't meet you in person quite yet, we're hoping you can at least do a video audition. Send us an email at casting@ontheicethemovie.com and we can explain more about how to do it. So far we've gotten emails from people in Pond Inlet, Montreal, Rankin Inlet, Kuujjuaraapik, Clyde River and Ottawa, and we're hoping people from all over will be able to videotape auditions.

Also, for those who've been reading since the beginning I wasn't able to get photos of the gorgeous bright yellow-orange Kuujjuaq trees because they had already lost their leaves by the time we got back there. I am however able to tell you what they are. From a very reliable source I have been told that they are a deciduous conifer called American larch, aka tamarach or Larix larcina. Here's a picture I didn't take of them. (Sadly it doesn't come close to how impressively vibrant they were in Kuujjuaq. They seemed plugged in!)



Next stop...Anchorage, Alaska!

Casting details for Kuujjuaq

We're heading to Kuujjuaq today, had a very productive three days here in Iqaluit, met lots of talented people. Here are the Kuujjuaq details for our casting this weekend there...

Our Kuujjuaq auditions begin on Saturday at the Kattitavik Theatre. For anyone interested in coming by, here are the details:

Saturday, October 17th -- 1-4pm
Sunday, October 18th -- 1-4pm

You are welcome to come any time within that time, but it's better to come Saturday if you can. If we are considering you for a role we might ask you to stay past 4pm on Saturday or come back Sunday as well. If you come Saturday, it gives us more time to get to know you. However, if you can only come Sunday, try your best to come close to 1pm.

We are willing to meet anyone 16 to 70. All roles are Inuit and you must be comfortable acting in English. We are casting a bunch of teenage roles, as well as a few adult men and women. We want to meet anyone interested in acting and filmmaking because we hope to make many films in and about the Arctic. If you aren't right for any parts in On the Ice, it's still worth coming because you might be right for a different film we want to make in the future.

Hope to see you this week! Feel free to email us any time if you have any questions at casting@ontheicethemovie.com.

CBC radio broadcast

We just did an interview with CBC Radio here in Iqaluit. They are going to broadcast it tomorrow (Wednesday) on the morning show. If you aren't in Canada and want to listen, you can listen live on the internet at http://www.cbc.ca/radio/

Casting details for Iqaluit

Our Iqaluit auditions begin tonight at the Iqaluit High School Library. For anyone interested in coming by, here are the details:

Tuesday, October 13th -- 6-9pm
Wednesday, October 14th -- 6-9pm
Thursday, October 15th -- 6-9pm

You are welcome to come any time within that time, but it's better to come Tuesday if you can. If we are considering you for a role we might ask you to come back on Wednesday and/or Thursday as well. If you come Tuesday evening, it gives us more time to get to know you. However, if you can't come Tuesday, any time you can make it is fine.

We are willing to meet anyone 16 to 70. All roles are Inuit and you must be comfortable acting in English. We are casting a bunch of teenage roles, as well as a few adult men and women. We want to meet anyone interested in acting and filmmaking because we hope to make many films in and about the Arctic. If you aren't right for any parts in On the Ice, it's still worth coming because you might be right for a different film we want to make in the future.

Hope to see you this week! Feel free to email us any time if you have any questions at casting@ontheicethemovie.com.

Andrew & Cara

Igloolik & language

One of the most impressive things about Igloolik is how strong the language is. Everyone there speaks fluent Inuktitut, elders, adults, and youth. Having watched our own Iñupiaq language in Barrow grow weaker over the years, as so many indigenous languages are all over the world, it’s inspiring to see a community that has been able to fight against this trend.

Iglooligmiut deservedly take a lot of pride in this. Almost every teenager we auditioned proudly told us that their first language is Inuktitut. And it wasn’t just empty boasting. When they spoke amongst themselves it was always in their native language. One 17 year-old boy told us that he almost lost his language while living for several years in Iqaluit, but was able to regain it when he moved back, though it took him a year and a half.

But the coolest thing to see was all the young mothers speaking to their children and infants in the language. This is how a language survives, not just because of dictionaries, language classes or even bilingual education, though all those things are important, but from parent to child, in the pedestrian discourse of their everyday lives.

I have to think that the strength of the language has a carry-over effect on other aspects of the community. Maybe it’s one reason why they have been able to achieve so much artistically. Amazing films like Atanarjuat, The Journals of Knud Rasmussen, Before Tomorrow, docs like Exile, the Nunavut series, and performance groups like ArtCirq don’t spring just from individuals like Zach Kunuk, Natar Ungalaaq, Pakak Innukshuk, Paul Angilirq, Madeline Ivalu or Guillaume Saladin. They come from a community that has never lost its voice.

Igloolik

Our visit to Igloolik went really well. We met about 30 people over the course of our 3 days of auditions and had a lot of fun. We weren't able to explore too far out of town, but we did manage to go on some walks around the vicinity and up on some nearby hills to get a better view of the whole area. Here's a few photos...

The hamlet of Igloolik from a hill on the edge of town



Center of town in Igloolik during the school day



This is an inukshuk on the hillside. An inukshuk is a Inuktitut cairn made out of stones, some look like people, some are more like sculpture. In this case it helps people see from a distance where the town is, but they can be used to mark all kinds of things--safe passage, a camp, food storage, a grave, etc,



Here's a bigger clearer photo of what they look like



If you look real close you can see the moon in the belly of the inukshuk above. Here's another photo of the half moon coming up at sunset that night.



We were lucky to get to spend a little time with Zacharias Kunuk. He is a filmmaker and community leader in Igloolik who runs a fantastic company called Isuma Productions, along with several other Igloolik artists and filmmakers.

Our special thanks go out to Carol Kunuk who helped us put together our casting sessions, and to both Carol and Zacharias for spreading the word about our film throughout the community.

For those of you who aren't aware of Isuma's films, I highly recommend you check them out. In particular I would recommend, Atanarjuat (The Fast Runner), The Journals of Knud Rasmussen, and Before Tomorrow.

Isuma Productions' building



Andrew during auditions



The view from Isuma looking out to the water, some kids playing out



We stayed at our new friend Guillaume Saladin's house. He runs an organization called Artcirq. It's the one and only Inuit circus group. Here's their website: http://www.artcirq.org/

Here I am all packed up and getting ready to head to the airport this morning.



We're in Iqaluit now, preparing for our auditions Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evening this week. More from Iqaluit soon.

Casting details for Igloolik

Our Igloolik auditions begin tonight at Isuma Productions. For anyone interested in coming by, here are the details:

Friday, October 9th -- 6-9pm
Saturday, October 10th -- 1-4pm
Sunday, October 11th -- 1-4pm

You are welcome to come any time within that time, but it's better to come Friday if you can. If we are considering you for a role we might ask you to come back on Saturday and/or Sunday as well. If you come Friday, it gives us more time to get to know you. However, if you can't come Friday, don't worry. Any time you can make it is fine.

We are willing to meet anyone 16 and older. We are casting a bunch of teenage roles, as well as a few adult men and women. We want to meet anyone interested in acting and filmmaking because we hope to make many films in and about the Arctic. If you aren't right for any parts in On the Ice, it's still worth coming because you might be right for a different film we want to make in the future.

Hope to see you this weekend! Feel free to email us any time if you have any questions at casting@ontheicethemovie.com.

Cara & Andrew

Iqaluit then Igloolik

Photos from our walk through Iqaluit yesterday...



An Iqaluit stop sign with Inuktitut and English.



Out towards the ocean.



Iqaluit High School



We flew into Igloolik this morning after a brief stop in Hall Beach. Feels good to finally be up here. Really friendly people, beautiful ocean, lots of ice. We went over and met a bunch of kids at the high school this afternoon, seems like we should have a good turn out this weekend.

A night in Iqaluit

We made it to Iqaluit, so far so good. Our plane stopped off in Kuujjuaq for a bit to drop some people off so we got a quick glimpse of the town from a distance. It's gorgeous up here. Does anyone know the name of the orange-yellow trees all over around Kuujjuaq? They look like evergreens, but they're very obviously turning orange with the change of the season. Now would be a great time for a photo but we didn't grab that one yet. Anyway, the trees are really stunning. I'll try to remember to get a picture when we're back there. A short flight later we're here in Iqaluit. There was no snow in Kuujjuaq, but Iqaluit has a bit. We haven't explored much yet, but thought you'd enjoy a glimpse of their impressive submarine-like airport, which is kind of the same shade as the Kuujjuaq trees.

On our way

We flew out from Laguardia this evening, head to Iqaluit for an overnight tomorrow, then finally to Igloolik on Thursday. We are spending tonight in the very special Holiday Inn at the Montreal Airport. This picture says it all.

Hello everyone...

Welcome to our On the Ice blog!

We are days away from heading out on our big casting trip and we're hoping we'll have the energy to share some stories and photos along the way. We leave New York Tuesday night and make it to Igloolik in Nunavut, northern Canada by Thursday morning. Neither of us have ever been to Igloolik, but we are really looking forward to it. Igloolik is the home of Isuma Productions, the company responsible for the stunning Inuktitut film Atanarjuat (The Fast Runner). Zacharias Kunuk, Norm Cohn, and Carol Kunuk, all from Isuma, have been helping us set up our auditions and so we're anxious to get up there and meet the many artists of Igloolik.

Here's a photo of Igloolik that we didn't take:

Stay tuned...Andrew & Cara