''Twice Colonized'' is a documentary film, directed by

Lin Alluna Lin Alluna is a Denmark, Danish film director. In 2017, she graduated as one of only six documentary film directors from the National Film School of Denmark, and was selected as one of the new “Nordic Talents” that same year by Nordisk Film & ...

and released in 2023.Guy Lodge
"'Twice Colonized' Review: An Indigenous Activist Defends Her People's Rights While Tending to Personal Wounds"
''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'', April 27, 2023. The film is a co-production of companies from

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

and

Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...

, and profiles Aaju Peter, an

Inuk Inuit (singular: Inuk) are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Russia, including Greenland, Labr ...

lawyer and activist who has lived in both Greenland and

Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...

, documenting both her activism for Inuit rights and her personal struggles. The film premiered in January 2023 at the

2023 Sundance Film Festival The 2023 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 19 to 29, 2023. The first lineup of competition films was announced on December 7, 2022. Films U.S. Dramatic Competition * '' The Accidental Getaway Driver'', directed by Sing J. Lee ...

. It had its Danish premiere in March as the opening film of the 2023 CPH:DOX film festival,Wendy Ide
"'Twice Colonized': CPH:DOX Review"
''

Screen Daily ''Screen International'' is a British film magazine covering the international film business. It is published by Media Business Insight, a British B2B media company which also owned '' Broadcast''. The magazine is primarily aimed at those involv ...

'', March 15, 2023. and its Canadian premiere in April as the opening film of the 2023

Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival is the largest documentary festival in North America. The event takes place annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The 27th edition of the festival took place online throughout May and Jun ...

. At the

12th Canadian Screen Awards The 12th Canadian Screen Awards were presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television to honour achievements in Canadian film, television and digital media production in 2023. They were held at the Canadian Broadcasting Centre in Toronto ...

in 2024, the film won the

Canadian Screen Award The Canadian Screen Awards () are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media ( web series) productions. Given annually by the Academy ...

for Best Feature Length Documentary, and Alary and Malfatti were nominated for Best Original Music in a Documentary. The film was broadcast by

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV, or simply CBC) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television, broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcasting, p ...

on September 13, 2023, as the season premiere of the documentary series ''

The Passionate Eye ''The Passionate Eye'' is a Canadian documentary television series that showcases documentary programming focusing on topics of news, current affairs, politics, and social issues. Airing on CBC Television and CBC News Network, the program airs a m ...

''.Greg David
"CBC sets fall 2023 streaming and broadcast premiere dates for new and returning original series on CBC Gem and CBC Television"
''TV, eh?'', August 24, 2023.

Synopsis

''Twice Colonized'' documents Inuk lawyer Aaju Peter. Aaju's Inuit people have been "twice

colonized 475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence. Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...

"—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, urging Westerners to reflect on their history of colonization. While she advocates to establish an Indigenous forum at the European Union, she embarks on a personal journey regarding the loss of her youngest son. The film was made over a seven year period by director Lin Alluna and co-writer Aaju Peter. It is the first co-production between Inuit across colonial borders.Noel Ransome
"Lawyer Aaju Peter on her healing and reconciliation journey in 'Twice Colonized' doc"
''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part of Torstar's Daily News Brands (Torstar), Daily News Brands division. ...

'', May 10, 2023. The financing had to be set up through the co-production treaty between the colonizing nations of Canada and Denmark to fund the film. Arnaquq-Baril had previously made the 2016 film ''

Angry Inuk ''Angry Inuk'' is a 2016 Canadian Inuit-themed feature-length documentary film written and directed by Alethea Arnaquq-Baril that defends the Inuit seal hunt, as the hunt is a vital means for Inuit to sustain themselves. Subjects in ''Angry Inuk' ...

'', which began as a documentary about Peter, but evolved into an issue-based film including but not entirely centred on Peter, as Arnaquq-Baril struggled to depict a more personal side of Peter's life. In an interview with ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', Peter says: "In this one I wanted everything shown, (...) and how hard it has been for me to be colonized and to reclaim myself. I wanted Lin to show all the good all the bad and everything in between."

Critical response

''Twice Colonized'' received positive reviews from critics at ''

'', The Guardian, ''

'', and ''

Exclaim ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly ''Exclaim!'' print magazine publishes seven ...

!'' Guy Lodge of ''Variety'' calls it a character study that "has a curiosity and a complexity that distinguish it from various other admiring activist portraits in the documentary sphere." Veronica Esposito of ''The Guardian'' notes that director Alluna finds “scenes and images that implicate numerous sides of her subject, while drawing in the web of relationships and power structures that surround her."

Awards and Honors

Director Lin Alluna and activist Aaju Peter wins Canadian academy award 2024

At the

in 2024, the film won the

for Best Feature Length Documentary,Kim Izzo
"CSAs '24: BlackBerry, Little Bird lead film, TV winners"
'' Playback'', May 31, 2024. and Alary and Malfatti were nominated for Best Original Music in a Documentary."BlackBerry Leads CSA Nominations"
''Northern Stars'', March 6, 2024. Nominated for the Nordic Arts Council's Film Prize 2024. Winner of Transparency Jury Prize at SIMA -

Social Impact Media Awards SIMA Studios, also known as the Social Impact Media Awards (SIMA), is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit impact media agency based in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 2012 by Daniela Kon Lieberberg, SIMA is dedicated to advancing global awareness, human righ ...

2024. Aaju Peter was named a 2024 Unforgettables Honoree by

Cinema Eye Honors The Cinema Eye Honors are awards recognizing excellence in nonfiction or documentary filmmaking and include awards for the disciplines of directing, producing, cinematography and editing. The awards are presented each January in New York and have b ...

after her performance in Twice Colonized. The film won the Camera Justitia Award at the Movies That Matter documentary festival in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

. Winner of Fighting Spirit Award and Special Mention Best International Feature at Doc Edge Festival 2023 in New Zealand. Winner of second Rigoberta-Menchú Award at Montreal First Peoples' Festival 2023. Winner of best documentary at Nuuk International Film Festival 2023. Grand Jury Prize winner at Gimli Film Festival 2023.

Olivier Alary Olivier Alary is a Montreal-based musician and composer who has released his own recordings, as well as composing for film and exhibitions. A native of Toulouse, France, and a former student of architecture, Alary created Ensemble in 1998 as a ...

and

Johannes Malfatti Johannes Malfatti (born 1976) is a German composer, sound designer and multi-instrumentalist from Berlin. He releases music under his own name and various monikers and writes music for film, theatre, art installations and advertisement. He studied ...

received a

Prix Iris Prix was an American power pop band formed in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1975 by Tommy Hoehn and Jon Tiven. The group ended up primarily as a studio project. Its recordings were produced by Tiven along with former Big Star member Chris Bell, who ...

nomination for Best Original Music in a Documentary at the

25th Quebec Cinema Awards The 25th Quebec Cinema Awards were held on December 10, 2023, to honour achievements in the Cinema of Quebec in 2022 and 2023.Oslo Pix Filmfestival 2023. The film was nominated for best documentary at the Danish Academy Award Robert Prisen 2024 and the Danish Golden Globes Bodil 2024

Pitch Awards

Winner of the Arctic Documentary Award for best political, environmental and cultural relevance at Tromsø International Filmfestival's North Pitch Below Zero 2019. Winner of Corus prize and Surprise Prize at Hot Docs Forum 2019. Winner of

Cineuropa award Cineuropa is an online information portal dedicated to the promotion of European cinema. It publishes daily news, reviews, interviews, and industry reports and maintains a database of information. It is available in four languages: English, Fren ...

/ Cineuropa Marketing Prize for best pitch at

DOK Leipzig DOK Leipzig is a documentary film festival that takes place every October in Leipzig, Germany. It is an international film festival for documentary and animated film founded in 1955 under the name "1st All-German Leipzig Festival of Cultural an ...

2020. Winner of best pitch at Cannes docs-in-progress at

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

Marché du Film 2022. Handing out the prize, jury member Gugi Gumilang, executive director at In-Docs, said: "The project really struck a chord with the jury for its outstanding empathetic storytelling as it explores a strong woman who wants to change herself and the world. The film walks an emotional tightrope and asks us broader questions around our culpability in systems of inequality."

Festivals

2023

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

, CPH:DOX,

Hot Docs The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival is the largest documentary festival in North America. The event takes place annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The 27th edition of the festival took place online throughout May and June ...

, Doc Edge IDFF, Movies That Matter Film Festival,

Crossing Europe Crossing Europe is an international film festival in Linz, Austria, that takes place every year in April since 2004. It defines itself as a platform for young European film makers. The focus of the film selection lies on sociopolitical and youth cu ...

, Millenium Docs Against Gravity, Ecofalante Environmental Film Festival in Sao Paulo, Docudays,

Sydney Film festival The Sydney Film Festival is an annual competitive film festival held in Sydney, Australia, usually over 12 days in June. A number of awards are given, the top one being the Sydney Film Prize. , the festival's director is Nashen Moodley. Histo ...

, Sheffield doc fest,

Maine International Film Festival The Maine International Film Festival, or MIFF, is a 10-day film festival held annually in Waterville, Maine. The festival usually runs in the third week of July at Railroad Square Cinema and the Waterville Opera House. Founded in 1998, the festiv ...

Jerusalem film festival The Jerusalem Film Festival (, ) is an international film festival held annually in Jerusalem, It was established in 1984 by the Director of the Jerusalem Cinematheque and Israeli Film Archive, Lia van Leer, Lia Van Leer, and has since become th ...

Galway film Fleadh The Galway Film Fleadh (; Irish for "festival") is an international film festival founded in 1989 as part of the Galway Arts Festival. Describing itself as Ireland’s leading film festival, the event is held every July in Galway city in Ire ...

, Durban Film Festival, Dokufest, Makedox, Oslo:PIX, Reykjavik International Film Festival, Planet on, In Our Own Words Film Festival, International Human Rights Film Festival Albania, Women Make Docs, Dochouse London, Syracuse University Human Rights Film Festival, Nordisk Panorama, Human Rights Film Festival Berlin,

Riga International Film Festival This is a list of Wikipedia articles about film festivals in Europe. Albania Armenia Austria Azerbaijan Belarus Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Czech Republic Cyprus Denmark Estonia Finland France Ge ...

, Women's World Film Festival, Filmfest FrauenWelten, Nordische Filmtage Lübeck, Festival dei Popoli International Film Festival, One World Human Rights Film Festival, Northern Lights Film Festival Belarus, IU Cinema, Cinema verite Iran International Film Festival, This Human World Film Festival.

2024

FIFP, Anthropological Film Festival, DocPoint Helsinki, Afro-Asian Institute Salzburg, Estonian National Art Museum, One World Human Rights Prague Film Festival, Mâoriland Film Festival, UCD - Ireland's Global University, Human Rights Film Festival Zürich, Scandinavian Film Days Bonn, LSE University, CIRCLE Women Doc, Evia Film Project (Thessaloniki film festival), Haugesund International Film Festival, Oslo Pix,

Helsinki International Film Festival The Helsinki International Film Festival – Love & Anarchy () is a non-competitive film festival held since 1988 in Helsinki, Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to ...

, Cinemateket i Tromsø, BIFED, Beholders Film Festival.

References

External links

* {{EyeSteelFilm 2023 films 2023 documentary films Canadian documentary films Danish documentary films Greenlandic documentary films Documentary films about Inuit in Canada EyeSteelFilm films 2020s Canadian films 2020s English-language films 2020s Danish-language films Greenlandic-language films Inuktitut-language films Films scored by Olivier Alary Films scored by Johannes Malfatti Best Documentary Film Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners English-language documentary films