Eskimo Artist: Kenojuak facts for kids

Eskimo Artist: Kenojuak is a short Canadian film made in 1964. It's about a famous Inuit artist named Kenojuak Ashevak. The film was directed by John Feeney and created by the National Film Board of Canada (NFB).

This film won a special award called the BAFTA Award for Best Short Film in 1964. The next year, in 1965, it was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Film.

About the Film

This 19-minute documentary shows how the amazing drawings by Inuit artist Kenojuak Ashevak are made into prints. It follows the process of her art being transferred to stone and then printed. These prints were then sold to museums and art collectors. Kenojuak Ashevak was a very important artist. She was the first woman to join the printmaking cooperative in Cape Dorset. A cooperative is a group of people who work together for a shared goal, like creating and selling art.

Important Note on the Word "Eskimo"

The film's title uses the word "Eskimo." The National Film Board of Canada wants everyone to know that this word is now considered old-fashioned and can be offensive. In Canada, people no longer use this term. The Inuit Circumpolar Council, a group that represents Inuit people around the world, officially stopped using the word in 1980. Since then, the NFB has also stopped using it. The correct term for the Indigenous people of the Arctic is Inuit (which means "the people").

Film's Later Life

Eskimo Artist: Kenojuak became popular again in 1992. Filmmakers Colin Low and Tony Ianzelo used parts of this older film. They combined it with new footage of Kenojuak Ashevak to create a new movie called Momentum. This was Canada's special IMAX HD film for Expo '92, a big world fair.

Awards and Recognition

Eskimo Artist: Kenojuak received many awards and honors from around the world. These awards show how important and well-made the film was.

• 18th British Academy Film Awards, London: BAFTA Award for Best Short Film, 1964
• Cork International Film Festival, Cork, Ireland: Statuette of St. Finbarr - First Prize, Art Films, 1964
• Festival of Tourist and Folklore Films, Brussels: Gold Medal - First Prize, 1965
• Melbourne International Film Festival, Melbourne: Silver Boomerang - Second Prize, 1965
• International Exhibition of Scientific Film, Buenos Aires: Second Prize, Category C, 1965
• Columbus International Film & Animation Festival, Columbus, Ohio: Chris Award, Education & Information, 1966
• American Film and Video Festival, New York: First Prize, Graphic Arts, Sculpture and Architecture, 1967
• Panama International Film Festival, Panama City, Panama: Grand Prize for Best Documentary, 1966
• Thessaloniki International Film Festival, Thessaloniki, Greece: First Prize, Foreign Film, 1967
• Festival of Cultural Films, La Felguera, Spain: Silver Plaque, 1967
• Philadelphia International Festival of Short Films, Philadelphia: Award of Exceptional Merit, 1971
• FIBA International Festival of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires: Diploma of Honor, 1968
• Tokyo International Film Festival, Tokyo, Japan: Certificate of Merit, 1966
• Vancouver International Film Festival, Vancouver: Certificate of Merit, 1964
• Venice Film Festival, Venice, Italy: Special Mention, 1964
• 37th Academy Awards, Los Angeles: Nominee: Best Documentary Short Subject, 1965