After two days of travel on a small plane and an even smaller plane on the world’s friendliest airline (we loved the “Hot Vegetarian” sandwich, Air North!) lugging 450 pounds of film gear, food and warm clothing, we have at last arrived at our destination: Old Crow, Yukon Territory!
Old Crow – named for 19th century Chief Deetru` K`avihdik (“Crow May I Walk”) – is the home of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, a village of about 300 people on the banks of the Porcupine River. Vutut Gwitchin translates as “People of the Lakes” and it is estimated that people have been living around these local lakes for the past 15,000 years.
Our dear friend and talented filmmaker Lisa g Nielsen has been coming to Old Crow for the past six years to facilitate the Our World project: community documentary and animation workshops that celebrate daily life, traditional culture and the Gwich’in language. Lisa and I were also in a band called cub waaaaay back in the ‘90s so it’s not just an honor but a true delight to have the opportunity to work together again on The Sound We See: Old Crow. We can’t wait to see where this cinematic journey leads!
