This classic film by Robert Flaherty, shot in 1922, documents one year in the life of Nanook, an Inuit hunter and his family as they struggle to survive in the harsh conditions of Canada’s Hudson Bay region. Without the use of dialogue, this piece describes the trading, hunting, fishing and migrations of a group barely touched by industrial technology. Nanook of the North was widely shown and praised as the first full-length, anthropological documentary in cinematography history. Flaherty’s landmark silent document of Eskimo life examines the daily lives of a small tribe living on the shores of Canada’s Hudson Bay region. Focusing on Inuit hunter Nanook and his family, the film presents real, vivid, demonstrations of hunting, building shelter and other aspects of surviving in cold, harsh conditions. Very popular upon its initial release in 1922, the film remains educational and enchanting today. ©1922 Silent
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