Depressed and out of answers, Woody, a 17-year-old Inuk boy, leaves a note for his mother and sets out with his rifle to end his own life. When his attempt fails, he inadvertently fires a bullet into the nearby Trans-Alaska Pipeline, setting off a federal manhunt through the wilderness and over the border into Northern Canada. There, he finds a community and reconnects with the land and his mother’s Inuit roots. As FBI agent Tarheel (Noomi Rapace) closes in on Woody’s trail, she begins to understand the pain behind his actions.
With In Alaska, Dutch filmmaker Jaap van Heusden and Inuk artist Vinnie Karetak map the generational effects of colonial violence onto both character and landscape, allowing the land to reflect Woody’s inner struggles. Woody’s journey is arduous, and he never entirely escapes the darkness that follows him, but Leo Matthew Temela’s performance reveals a young man who may finally be learning what it means to be alive.
Oct 5 & 6: Filmmaker Q&A
Jaap van Heusden, Vinnie Karetak
Noomi Rapace, Leo Matthew Temela, Yin Wang, Zorga Qaunaq, Miali Buscemi, Joanassie Aupaluk
Netherlands/Canada
2026
In English and Inuktitut with English subtitles
At International Village
At Fifth Ave
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Indigenous Access Tickets Community Access Tickets Ticket Donation Requests
Credits
Executive Producer
Niv Fichman, Fraser Ash, Kevin Krikst, Remy Mulder, Jaap van Heusden, Gregory Chambet, Omar Chalabi, Matthew Foster, Daniel Koefoed, Guirec van Slingelandt
Producer
Marc Bary, Tyler Hagan, Vinnie Karetak
Screenwriter
Jaap van Heusden, Vinnie Karetak
Cinematography
Martijn van Broekhuizen
Editor
Xander Nijsten
Production Design
Tiana Gordon, Cheryl Marion
Original Music
Minco Eggersman
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