IGLOOLIK, Nunavut — Only six months after its launch in January, Uvagut TV, Canada’s first Inuktuk-language TV channel, is helping to build live production capacity in communities across Inuit Nunangat, by enabling filmmaking teams to produce and share their stories with each other and a national audience.
Since March, Uvagut TV’s flagship program Tunnganarniq Live, a showcase of Inuit talent, has been guest hosted several times by members of the Arviat Film Society. On June 23, members of the Inuvialuit Communications Society, newly trained in live broadcasting techniques, will host the first Inuvik-based episode of the show, says a press release issued today by the channel.
“Expanding local capacity in live production is central to our vision for the channel,” says Lucy Tulugarjuk, managing director of Uvagut TV, in the press release. “Community-based filmmaking teams across the region are developing new skills and sharing their stories with other Inuit live on television. That’s never been possible for us before. And this is only the beginning. As Uvagut TV grows in the months ahead, we’ll be able to offer live programming from different communities on a daily basis.”
Local production teams are being trained in LiveU Solo, technology allowing them to transmit a signal from their cameras to Uvagut TV’s master control, which then broadcasts the program on Uvagut TV, the Uvagut Facebook page and an online mirror broadcast stream at www.uvagut.tv, explains the press release.
Maia Iotzova, project manager on Tunnganarniq Live, has been overseeing the community-based training. “This kind of high-tech low-cost live broadcasting works well in the Arctic,” she says, “and we’re excited about the potential to expand into other communities.”
“Going on live broadcast here in our own community feels amazing,” says Nuatie Sylvia Aggark, who has been hosting the Arviat episodes of Tunnganarniq Live and getting tech support from her husband, Evano Jr Aggark. “We’re getting support from our leaders — our SAO (senior administrative officer), mayor and MLA — and from people all over Kivalliq region. And here in Arviat people are happy that we’re representing our town in a good way, with so many talented people and different artists.”
Among the guests Aggark has welcomed on the show are musician Paul K. Irksuk, visual artist Monica Pingushat, dancers Shelton Nipisar and Malachi Paungalak (pictured above, left to right), and chef Hattie Alagalak. Her Arviat team also produced a special live broadcast of a recent musical celebration in its community hall.
Margaret Noksana, who hails originally from Tuktoyaktuk, will host the first broadcast of Tunnganarniq Live from Inuvik, which will feature Nungki Rogers and his niece Vanessa Rogers, members of the Inuvik Drummers and Dancers group.
Uvagut TV is available nationally to 610,000 Shaw Direct satellite subscribers, as well as Arctic Co-op Cable subscribers in Nunavut and Northwest Territories, and FCNQ subscribers in Nunavik.
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Photo courtesy of Arviat Film Society, supplied by Uvagut TV.
