A National Film Board of Canada Production
To Heather Campbell, her grandmother Evelyn was a teacher, a matriarch and a beloved family member, but to everyone else in the small community of Rigolet, Labrador, she was a force of nature otherwise known as Miss Campbell.
As a trailblazer for an Inuit-led educational system, Evelyn was the only teacher in a one-room school, teaching grades K–12. Although she had inherited the methodologies of earlier educators, her motivation was entirely different. In a career that spanned more than 35 years, she embraced her Inuit heritage and passed on her passion for learning through music and stories. In 1986, Evelyn Campbell was awarded the Order of Canada.
Part oral history and part visual poem, Miss Campbell: Inuk Teacher combines Heather’s exquisite water colour paintings of narwals, polar bears, seals and birds with home movies, family photos and lively animation to capture the spirit of this extraordinary woman for her documentary portrait.
To Heather Campbell, her grandmother was a teacher, a matriarch and a beloved family member, but to everyone else in the small community of Rigolet, Labrador, she was a force of nature otherwise known as Miss Campbell.
Part oral history and part visual poem, Miss Campbell: Inuk Teacher combines Heather’s exquisite water colour paintings of narwals, polar bears, seals and birds with home movies, family photos and lively animation to capture the spirit of this extraordinary woman for her documentary portrait.
From a young age, Evelyn Campbell possessed a keen sense of justice. At residential school, she helped her fellow students study and pass exams, an experience that forged her desire to be a teacher. As one of the first Indigenous educators in the public school system in the country, she wanted to instill a sense of pride in her students, teach them about their culture and break the cycle of stigma and trauma that she herself had suffered at residential school. “She knew that all of the kids in this town were smart,” explains her granddaughter Heather. “She knew that we could succeed.”
As a trailblazer for an Inuit-led educational system, Evelyn was the only teacher in a one-room school, teaching grades K–12. Although she had inherited the methodologies of earlier educators, her motivation was entirely different. In a career that spanned more than 35 years, she embraced her Inuit heritage and shared her passion for learning through music and stories. In 1986, Evelyn Campbell was awarded the Order of Canada.
Recreating not only the events of a life, but also the spare beauty of the landscape in fluid, free-flowing images that embody traditional knowledge passed on from generation to generation, Miss Campbell: Inuk Teacher is a loving testimony to the ability of one person to help shape an entire community.
Part oral history and part visual poem, Miss Campbell: Inuk Teacher is the story of Evelyn Campbell, a trailblazer for an Inuit-led educational system in the small community of Rigolet, Labrador.
To the best of my knowledge, my grandmother, “Miss Campbell,” was one of the very first accredited teachers of Inuit ancestry in Canada. During her time, the ethnicities of educators were not documented in Newfoundland and Labrador. Through this film, I want to make sure her historic contributions will not be forgotten.
After completing her education in the residential school system, Miss Campbell received her teacher accreditation and taught the children from her hometown for 37 years. Over the years, I thought of many ways of honouring my grandmother and her remarkable story. Upon returning home to Labrador from Ontario, I gained a greater understanding of how difficult her situation must have been. She had to navigate two worlds: one of the colonial education systems and the other of her Inuit culture. This film has been a way for me to revisit and better understand my memories of my grandmother and to see them through an informed lens.
As an artist, I wanted to honour my grandmother using my own art. All the film’s animated scenes are from my watercolour paintings, intended to tie the threads of my grandmother’s life together. I splatter and swirl droplets of ink, then let it dry to create an abstract background. In that background I find familiar shapes of people and animals, then outline them and add details to make them pop. Through animation, they come to life on the page. Each figure symbolizes an aspect of my grandmother’s life that has been brought into focus for me during the film.
My hope is that Miss Campbell: Inuk Teacher inspires many other Inuit children and youth to believe in themselves, make it through the education system, and go on to fight for positive change for themselves and their communities.
The Labrador Documentary Project (Lab Doc Project) supports Indigenous storytelling by working with first-time Labrador Inuit filmmakers to create and distribute Inuit stories from Inuit perspectives. The Lab Doc Project is led by Inuit through community collaboration, and focuses on topics selected by the filmmakers through a process of reflection and community engagement. This initiative aims to elevate Indigenous storytelling in Newfoundland and Labrador, create film opportunities for Inuit, and proactively diversify our industry. There are four films in this Project, with two launching in 2021, and the remaining films launching in 2023.
To the matriarch of our family, whose spirit continues to guide us every day.
Evelyn Campbell (Shiwak) 1928-2013
Written and Directed by
Heather Campbell
Featuring
The communities/settlements of Northwest River, Mulligan, Rigolet, and Snooks Cove
Malia Campbell
Iris Allen
Angel Jacobish
Director of Photography
Nigel Markham
Editors
Sarah Byrne
Mille Clarke
Sound Editor
Geoff Younghusband
Original Music by
Devon Ross
Visual Effects and Animation by
Glenn Gear
Narration By
Heather Campbell
Production Manager
Aimee Chaulk
Assistant Animator
Bradley Colbourne
Sound Recordist
Josh Owen
Drone Footage
Bird’s Eye Incorporated
Mentors
Courtney Montour
Alanis Obomsawin
Cultural Consultant
Heather Igloliorte
Researcher
Heather Campbell
Inuktitut Translation
Katie Winters
Inuktitut Language Advisor
Joan Dicker
Archives Courtesy Of
Evelyn Campbell (1928 – 2013)
Francis Campbell (1931 – 2003)
Iris Allen
Jonathan Allen
Heather Campbell
Verna Faulkner
Hector Baikie
Dale Blake
Melva Williams
With gratitude to the Communities of Northwest River, Rigolet, Snooks Cove and Goosebay, Labrador who made this film possible.
Kitchen Party
Hubert Allen
Iris Allen
Angel Jacobish
Sophia Allen
Grace Allen
Hannah Riche
Jonathan Allen
Nicole Allen
Marty Allen
Joshua Campbell and Mina Campbell
Chase Allen
Thank You
Roger Shiwak, Laura Shiwak, Juliette Chaulk,
Hector Baikie, Edith White,Dale Blake,
Karen MacDonald, Chantelle Williams, Joshua Campbell,
Mina Campbell, Scott Russell, Charlie Flowers, Verna Flowers,
Holly Anderson, Ossie Michelin, Jennie Williams
A Special Thanks To
Dr. Jean Crane
Nicole Allen
Jack Shiwak
Fred Shiwak
I send love and gratitude to my daughter Malia Campbell, parents Iris Allen and Hubert Allen, sisters Nicole Allen and Janice Allen-Parsons, brothers Marty Allen and Kirk Blake, and their respective families.
Production Supervisor
Roz Power
Digital Editing Technicians
Pierre Dupont
Marie-Josée Gourde
Patrick Trahan
Technical Coordinators
Daniel Lord
Christopher Macintosh
Online Editors and Colourists
Denis Pilon
Re-recording
Jean-Paul Vialard
Foley and Narration Engineer
Matthew Thomson
Foley Artist
Hilary Thomson
Graphic Designers
Mélanie Bouchard
Alain Ostiguy
Cynthia Ouellet
Mixing (PRIM)
Bruno Bélanger
Mixing Coordinator (PRIM)
Julie René
Production Coordinator
Yanis Ait Mohamed
Senior Production Co-ordinators
Cheryl Murgatroyd
Anna MacLean
Sarah MacLeod
Studio Administrator
Leslie Anne Poyntz
Marketing Manager
Jamie Hammond
Marketing Coordinator
Julie Fortin
Publicist
Osas Eweka-Smith
Legal Counsel
Peter Kallianiotis
Dominique Aubry
Associate Producer (In Development)
Stephen Agluvak Puskas
Production Assistant (In Development)
Marian Rebeiro
Associate Producer
Jayde Tynes
Producers
Rohan Fernando
Kat Baulu
Latonia Hartery
Executive Producers, Quebec and Atlantic Studio
Annette Clarke
Rohan Fernando
Developed with the participation of the NLFDC and LJH Films
Part of the LABRADOR DOC PROJECT shorts series
A National Film Board of Canada production© 2022