American Documentary

Overview

Brooklyn, N.Y. – January 22, 2023 – POV, announced today the acquisition of Danish director Lin Alluna’s candid exposé Twice Colonized produced by Emile Hertling Péronard, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, Stacey Aglok MacDonald and Bob Moore. In the film, Alluna travels with Inuit lawyer Aaju Peter as she embarks on a personal journey to reclaim her language and identity after a lifetime of whitewashing and forced assimilation. The goal, to bring her colonizers in both Canada and Denmark to justice. Twice Colonized, a co-production between Ánorâk Film, EyeSteelFilm, and Red Marrow Media, is the first co-production between Inuit across colonial borders.

Last week, Alluna’s Twice Colonized was announced as a finalist for the 12th Annual Social Impact Media Awards (SIMA 2024), received a Robert Award (the Danish Oscars) nomination for “Best Documentary,” and Cinema Eye Honors recognized Aaju Peter as one of its “Unforgettables” Award winners at their 2024 ceremony. Twice Colonized is playing at the upcoming KDocsFF 2024 in Vancouver where Peter is the keynote speaker at Decolonizing Power.

Twice Colonized will make its national broadcast premiere on PBS as part of POV's upcoming 37th season launching summer 2024. The multi Emmy®, Peabody and Academy Award®-winning series, POV, is America’s longest running non-fiction television series.

“We are happy to add Lin Alluna’s eye-opening Twice Colonized, to our illustrious catalog of inspiring films,” said Chris White, executive producer, POV. "As our world becomes more complex, public media is a safe space for non-fiction filmmakers to tell authentic stories about the issues impacting indigenous communities."

“Aaju Peter is a modern day hero, who generously bares her soul for us to learn from her,” said director Lin Alluna. “We want Twice Colonized to empower the audience to feel that no matter who they are, where they come from or what they've been through they can still make a difference. We’re beyond thrilled that this message, through our partnership with POV, will reach even more people.”

TheTwice Colonized deal was negotiated by Chris White and Erika Dilday for American Documentary | POV and Salma Abdalla and Jason Resnick for Autlook Filmsales.

In Twice Colonized, renowned Inuit lawyer Aaju Peter is a force of nature. As a member of a historically marginalized and oppressed community, Aaju's heritage puts her in the unique position of someone who has been "twice colonized" -- first by Danish settlers in Greenland, and then by modern-day Canadian policies and institutions. As an activist, she defends the human rights of Indigenous peoples of the Arctic and is a fierce protector of her ancestral lands. She works to bring her colonizers in both Canada and Denmark to justice and deploys her effusive spirit and illuminating wit to provoke self-examination and personal responsibility among Westerners for imposing their colonial ways. As Peter launches an effort to establish an Indigenous forum at the European Union, she also embarks upon a complex and deeply personal journey to mend her own wounds from the unexpected passing of her youngest son.

In the emotionally powerful documentary, director Lin Alluna journeys alongside Peter as she plumbs through the social and personal wreckage of sanctioned white dominance to find the strength — within her abilities, her community, and her own vulnerabilities — to transform her hardships and painful experiences into something amazing that can inspire others who also struggle with the poisonous effects of colonialism.

Twice Colonized made its world premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival where it was a Grand Jury Prize World Cinema - Documentary nominee. Twice Colonized made its Danish premiere as the Opening Night film at the 2023 CPH:DOX Film Festival. The film opened the 2023 Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival marking its Canadian premiere. It’s the first time in history that the same film has opened both these high profile documentary festivals.

Credits

Director: Lin Alluna
Producers: Emile Hertling Péronard, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, Stacey Aglok MacDonald, Bob Moore
Executive Producers: Inuk Silis Høegh, Mila Aung-Thwin, Daniel Cross, Aaju Peter, Erika Dilday, Chris White
Associate Producer: Katie McKay
Writers: Lin Alluna, Aaju Peter
Editor: Mark Bukdahl
Cinematographers: Iris Ng, Glauco Bermudez, David Bauer, Lin Alluna
Sound Design: Benoît Dame, Catherine Van Der Donckt
Music: Olivier Alary, Johannes Malfatti, Celina Kalluk
RT: 82min
Language: English, Danish, Kalaallisut, Inuktitut
Countries: Denmark, Canada, Greenland
Year: 2023

About

About POV

Produced by American Documentary, POV is the longest-running independent documentary showcase on American television. Since 1988, POV has presented films on PBS that capture the full spectrum of the human experience, with a long commitment to centering women and people of color in front of, and behind, the camera. The series is known for introducing generations of viewers to groundbreaking works like Tongues Untied, American Promise, Minding The Gap and Not Going Quietly, and innovative filmmakers including Jonathan Demme, Laura Poitras and Nanfu Wang. In 2018, POV Shorts launched as one of the first PBS series dedicated to bold and timely short-form documentaries. All POV programs are available for streaming concurrent with broadcast on all station-branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and the PBS App, available on iOS, Android, Roku streaming devices, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast and VIZIO. For more information about PBS Passport, visit the PBS Passport FAQ website.

POV goes “beyond the broadcast” to bring powerful nonfiction storytelling to viewers wherever they are. Free educational resources accompany every film and a community network of thousands of partners nationwide work with POV to spark dialogue around today’s most pressing issues. POV continues to explore the future of documentary through innovative productions with partners such as The New York Times and The National Film Board of Canada and on platforms including Snapchat and Instagram.

POV films and projects have won 47 Emmy® Awards, 27 George Foster Peabody Awards, 15 Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards, three Academy Awards® and the first-ever George Polk Documentary Film Award. Learn more at pbs.org/pov and follow @povdocs on social media.

About American Documentary, Inc.

American Documentary, Inc. (AmDoc) is a multimedia organization dedicated to creating, identifying and presenting contemporary stories that express opinions and perspectives rarely featured in mainstream media outlets. AmDoc is a catalyst for public culture, developing collaborative strategic engagement activities around socially relevant content on television, online and in community settings. These activities are designed to trigger action, from dialogue and feedback to educational opportunities and community participation.

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