Introduce young viewers to documentary cinema with these five films. Watch them for free in the classroom or at home with the whole family!
Synopsis
Living Here is a story made of solitude and wind, told with the poetry of Nunavik’s stark tundra and the beauty of young Martha’s words.
A word from Tënk
This film is part of our Doc for Young Audiences program, featuring five films that introduce young viewers to the world of documentary cinema. Perfect for classroom screenings or to enjoy at home with the family—free to watch!
“Martha’s village is in northern Quebec. It’s snowy everywhere. I thought the images were very detailed. You could see that it was really beautiful there. If we lived there, we could have bigger snowball fights and build bigger forts.”
Léo, 9 years old
“I thought it was beautiful to see little plants through the snow. It’s very vast. But there are people who want to destroy their land. I think it’s because some people want to take the resources under the ground.”
Lily, 11 years old
If you want to go further
- Have you ever traveled very, very far from home? Was it for a trip or because you moved?
- Would you rather live in a quiet, peaceful place like Martha's village or in a big city?
- What differences did you notice between where you live and where Martha lives?
- Did you find it difficult to watch a film with subtitles?
- Was this the first time you had heard Inuktitut?
- The film has a very calming effect. How do you think the director succeeds in conveying the peaceful atmosphere of the place?
- Martha has grown up now—the film was made ten years ago. How do you imagine her today?
- Martha is proud to be Inuk. What traditions did she learn from her parents? Have your parents taught you any traditions or skills as well?
- Why does Martha say that her children may never see the place where she grew up?
Points for reflection
Living Here opens the door to a wide range of themes related to encounter, travel, and displacement. In her introductory video, the director explains how meeting young Martha transformed the focus of her film. The short documentary bears witness to a gaze filled with admiration and affection for its protagonist. The relationship between the two young women shapes the film; it is, above all, a genuine encounter.
Sarah Baril Gaudet has said that Martha’s dilemma—whether to leave for the city or remain in her village—resonated with her own experience as a young woman who had to leave Témiscamingue to pursue her studies in Montreal. It is this resonance between two realities that seem, at first glance, so different that allows us to enter Martha’s daily life with such empathy.
The film invites young viewers to reflect on realities different from their own: what might my life look like if I had been born somewhere else? This is the beginning of a deeper reflection on decentring oneself, cultural relativism, and the discovery of otherness. It also offers a respectful and beautiful introduction to Inuit culture, moving beyond narratives centred solely on colonialism and cultural genocide. The film celebrates traditions, landscape, and art while situating them within the contemporary context of a community far removed from urban centres. It is a wonderful way to introduce children to the richness of Indigenous cultures through the eyes of a young woman who embodies both the vitality and the tensions of contemporary realities.
