John Houston Films

Atautsikut / Leaving None Behind (Sixty Minutes, 4K, 2019)
Inuit and Cree of Nunavik (Northern Québec) recount how they escaped the economic oppression of the Hudson’s Bay Company. Overcoming tremendous challenges, in 1959 they founded a co-operative; then other communities followed suit. Today, the federation they created contributes as part of Nunavik’s co-operative movement, with accumulated assets exceeding half a billion dollars! Drawing on their traditional values, Inuit and Cree teach us something of real value today: how to put social development at the heart of everything – including a successful business! Building prosperity, yet “leaving none behind.”

Buy a DVD: houstonproductions.square.site
Educational use: mcintyre.ca/titles/000010

Songs in Stone: an arctic journey home (Forty-five Minutes, 16mm, 1999)
A deathbed wish brings together an extended, cross-cultural family.
For John’s first film, he co-wrote and directed a documentary about his parents, Inuit art pioneers James and Alma Houston, the Inuit of Cape Dorset, and their very special collaboration that launched Inuit art onto the world stage. Shot in the community of Cape Dorset, on Baffin Island, the film launched an Arctic trilogy. It was also the birth of drumsong communications.
To purchase a DVD: houstonproductions.square.site
For educational use: mcintyre.ca/titles/000016

Nuliajuk: Mother of the Sea Beasts (Fifth Minutes, Super 16mm, 2002)
This story holds the key to a mystery - a look into the Inuit soul – a quest for the female deity known to many as Sedna, alive in countless Inuit artworks, yet rarely mentioned. Continuing the trilogy, John probes the relevance of Nuliajuk’s ancient message - not only for Inuit but for us all – with the last elders who remember Her. And Inuit elders are the heroes here, breaking the long silence imposed on them by missionaries to share a hidden side of their spirituality.
International Emmy nominee, and winner of the first Directors Guild of Canada Award for Outstanding Achievement in a Documentary.
To purchase a DVD: houstonproductions.square.site
Educational use: mcintyre.ca/titles/000014

Diet of Souls (Forty-eight Minutes, Super 16mm, 2003)
John’s capper to the trilogy; a look inside the mind of the Inuit hunter. “The great peril of our existence lies in the fact that our diet consists entirely of souls.” So an Inuit shaman summarized the moral danger of being human... Director John Houston’s third Arctic journey was sparked by a paradox: “Can animals be spiritual equals and one’s daily bread?” Multiple award-winner, Gemini nominee, Smithsonian Institution Native American Film & Video Festival selection.

Buy a DVD: houstonproductions.square.site
Educational Use: mcintyre.ca/titles/000015

Kiviuq (Seventy-two Minutes, SONY XD-Cam, 2007)
(Review by Nora Isaacs, Mill Valley Film Festival, USA)
“Renowned Canadian director John Houston tells the story of the Inuit culture’s celebrated epic hero, the prophet and shaman Kiviuq. The tale of Kiviuq, who was born when the world began, is considered ‘the secret Bible’ in Inuit tradition, and Houston—who is known worldwide for making movies that celebrate Inuit culture— relates this millennia-old tale as told to him by Inuit elders. In a unique performance piece, spoken in Inuktitut and filmed in one room, Houston lets the Inuit arts of music, dance, song and storytelling reveal a timeless story about bravery, betrayal and survival. Not only does this intriguing work preserve a rich history in danger of being lost, it also instructs viewers which paths to take and which paths to avoid, no matter what century they live in.”

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Educational Use: mcintyre.ca/titles/000018

James Houston: The Most Interesting Group of People you’ll ever Meet
(Forty-nine Minutes, High Definition, 2008)
A multi-faceted remembrance, reflecting the life of Canadian artist/ author/designer/filmmaker James Houston. His name evokes the world of Inuit art - his life exemplifies what non-native and aboriginal people can accomplish together, when there is mutual trust. "Your father, Saumik, was one of our most prominent people, one who can never be forgotten, even when we're no longer living. Our children will hear of him, and so will their children." (James Houston's Inuit name was Saumik; 'the left-handed one')
– The Honourable Ann Meekitjuk Hanson, C.M., Commissioner of Nunavut
Buy a DVD: houstonproductions.square.site
Educational use: mcintyre.ca/titles/000017