Daron Letts
Northern News Services

Iqaluit (July 11/05) - A new Inuktitut-language documentary series, titled Strength In Words, will profile six elders' stories, lives and relationships.

Inuit Communications Systems Ltd. is completing the series this month. It is scheduled for broadcast on the Aboriginal Peoples' Television Network (APTN) in October.

The films include six half-hour documentaries shot by four directors throughout the territory.

"We wanted to get away from the standard historical, life story approach and explore more contemporary themes," said series producer Mark Hamilton. "Our priority was to have all Inuit directors and film in the Inuktitut language."

The documentaries were produced almost entirely in Nunavut, with some sound editing and other technical work done outside the territory. The dozen or so people who worked on the films were almost all Inuit.

The bulk of the series' $600,000 budget was funded through APTN, the Canadian Television Fund and Telefilm Canada. The Nunavut Film Commission contributed $130,000 over two fiscal years.

French and English subtitles will be added to the films after the Inuktitut versions are complete.