Inside a Greenlandic prison, a profound bond forms between two women: Ruth has spent over a decade in indefinite detention, while Nina is a filmmaker visiting the facility. What begins as a documentary about carceral systems shaped by colonial bureaucracy becomes something more intimate — a co-authored reckoning with trauma, survival, and the uneven legacies of history. Through years of filmed conversations and self-recorded footage, Ruth and Nina confront shared experiences of sexual abuse, abandonment, and systemic neglect.
Directed by Nina Paninnguaq Skydsbjerg and Sofie Rørdam, Walls – Akinni Inuk (“the person in front of me” in Greenlandic) is a quietly radical portrait of empathy across divides. Rather than sensationalizing violence, the film offers glimpses of resilience through stillness, dark humour, and sweeping views of the Arctic landscape. In a nation contending with postcolonial injustice and inherited trauma, this unsentimental yet deeply felt work asks what it means to heal through human connection, and how freedom can be redefined through relationships.
Media Partner
Community Partner
Ruth Mikaelsen Jeremiassen, Nina Paninnguaq Skydsbjerg
Greenland
2025
In Greenlandic and Kalaallisut with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Credits & Director
Executive Producer
Inuk Silis Høegh
Producer
Emile Hertling Péronard
Cinematography
Sofie Rørdam, Anders Berthelsen, Inuk Silis Høegh
Editor
Biel Andrés, Nanna Frank Møller
Original Music
Gustav Lynge Petrussen
Sofie Rørdam
Sofie Rørdam is a Danish filmmaker and visual communicator who works globally with film, engaging with it as a co-creative process that can challenge our beliefs and offer glimpses of ourselves where we least expect it.
Photo by Oscar Scott Carl
Nina Paninnguaq Skydsbjerg
Nina Paninnguaq Skydsbjerg is a Greenlandic film producer and director who has worked in the creative industry since 2010. She has primarily focused on creating projects that highlight Greenlandic stories and local talents, and her directorial debut Walls (2025) marks an important step in her film career, delving into complex topics such as justice, punishment, and identity. Previously, she produced Alanngut Killinganni (2023), which was the first Greenlandic film nominated for the Nordic Council Film Prize.
Photo by Jorgen Chemnitz
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