Iqaluit (July 17/06) - It's short, it's unfinished, but it's still a striking piece of historical and personal filmmaking, more than a year in the making.

The film is "Staking the Claim," a documentary chronicling the Nunavut land claims process through the eyes of its architects, as interviewed by a small team of Inuit youth, and it stole the show during Alianait!'s Film Day earlier this month.

From left, Kath Clarida Fry, Marianne Demmer and Stacey Aglok MacDonald hold up the tapes that make up "Staking the Claim," a documentary that chronicles the history of Nunavut land claims through the eyes of its architects and the Inuk youth who interviewed them. - Adam Johnson/NNSL photo

The three-part film features Nunavut Sivuniksavut alumni Stacey Aglok MacDonald (originally from Kugluktuk), Tommy Akulukjuk (Pangnirtung), Pauloosie Akeeagok (Grise Fiord) and David Joanasie (Cape Dorset), on a cross-country journey to learn more about Inuit history and its future.

In the process, they speak with land claims figures Tagak Curley, Mary Simon, Tony Andersen and many others, blending in stock historical footage to provide context.

The documentary was created by EnTheos Films, an Ottawa-based film company founded by former Inuit Broadcasting Corporation contributors Kath Clarida Fry and Marianne Demmer.

"We wanted to capture the truths, joys and sadness embedded in the journey the Inuit have been through in the last 30 years," Demmer said.

She said the film was made in co-operation with the Ottawa-based school Nunavut Sivuniksavut, with plans to release it as educational material for Northern and southern schools alike.

"They (Nunavut Sivuniksavut) realized that very few people get to learn their own story," she said. "It's always been their dream to bring this story to young people."

The official release will include a three-part DVD, complete with timelines, bibliographies and teacher's guides.

Only the first piece of the three-part film was shown to audiences, and that itself was a Herculean task, as the film was a late addition to the Alianait! lineup.

"There wasn't even time to put in a title," said documentary guide and production assistant Aglok MacDonald.

While the project is far from finished, Clarida Fry said the response from moviegoers and educators has been very positive.

"This is the kind of thing that makes you think you're on the right track," she said.

"It was absolutely incredible," Aglok MacDonald said of her experiences on the film. "It was a privilege and an honour to be a part of this project."