Rankin Inlet (Mar 31/04) - A taste of Hollywood came to Rankin Inlet this past week with the debut screening of the major motion film The Snow Walker.

The film is based on a short story by Farley Mowat (Walk Well My Brother) and stars Barry Pepper as pilot Charlie Halliday and Nunavut's own Annabella Piugattuk of Iglulik as Kanaalaq, the woman with whom Halliday struggles to survive after their plane crashes in the Kivalliq.

The movie has been nominated for nine Genie awards (the Canadian version of the Oscar), including best film, best actor (Pepper), best supporting actress (Piugattuk) and best director (Charles Martin Smith).

Piugattuk was on hand for the film's debut in Rankin.

The young actress is already building a solid reputation for her dedication to Inuit culture.

"My dedication came about at a young age by being around people who have a pretty good knowledge of our culture," says Piugattuk.

"I'd get so excited whenever there were special events, and I'd want to be involved and ask questions about anything I didn't understand.

"I used to camp every summer with my parents and other people in the community and I'd watch how they did things and learn from that."

Piugattuk says she never used to pay any attention to how Inuit were represented on the national and international scenes, nor the lack of interest in Inuit culture often shown by non-native people.

That all changed, however, when a kid from Rankin Inlet hit the big time.

"As soon as I heard Nashville picked Jordin Tootoo, that was like a big wow for me.

"I thought it was incredible for the first young Inuk to be drafted into the NHL.

"Then I got this role and realized Inuit are just beginning to be really recognized as a people.

"We've been here a long, long time and it's about time we're finally getting recognized for who we really are, our uniqueness and our diversity in living in such a cold environment."

Piugattuk says when a person presents themselves as Inuit, they should be a real Inuk and walk the walk, not just talk the talk.

She says a "real" Inuk should have a good understanding of their culture and a genuine sense of who they are.

"If you really want to learn about your culture and who you are, you can.

"And you can balance that part of our culture with going to school and getting a higher education.

"In fact, as well as listening to your elders, you can learn plenty about your culture on computers when you have the education to know how to go about it.

"So, you can balance out the two cultures by being interested in Inuit culture, both physically and spiritually, and also being interested in the ways of the white people by going to school and getting a better education to expand your horizons."

Piugattuk says she will always have fond memories of working on The Snow Walker with Pepper.

She says the interaction between her and the Hollywood star was no different than it is with her cousins or friends.

"Barry's (Pepper) just a wonderful, amazing, talented guy, who's really smart and outgoing.

"He calmed me down when I felt like this isn't me and I can't do it any more.

"He told me I was representing my people and his encouragement gave me the strength to continue on."

Piugattuk says she has no worries about losing her sense of who she is by moving to Vancouver to continue her education.

She readily admits to being almost as nervous as she is excited about returning to her home town this week for the first time in about a year.

"I won't know if anybody's attitude towards me has changed until I get there.

"I hope they all still love and appreciate me for who they know me as, not the person who was cast in a Hollywood film.

"Once I get there, I'll know who's a real friend and who's not if any attitudes change towards me."