Special Screening: The Duck In
In this film, Edwardson documents the successful protest of the Inupiat of Barrow (now known as Utqiaġvik), Alaska, against federal regulations interfering with subsistence hunting brought by Alaska statehood in 1959.
About the Speakers
Rachael Edwardson
Producer, Director, Impact Producer, Educator (she/her). Rachel is an Iñupiat/Norwegian/Sami woman from Utqiagvik (Alaska) and is a social justice film director/producer. She has directed and produced 8 documentaries, 2 short dramas and 13 episodes for television. Most recently she co-produced the film and impact campaign for In My Blood It Runs and was a collaborating director and co-lead workshop designer and facilitator for Burn, a improvisational short drama targeting youth gang violence in inner city Sydney. She is a 2009 alumni of the Sundance Institute Ford Fellowship for her Iñupiaq Fantasy Trilogy and short film. Her History of the Iñupiaq documentary series was the first all native produced and directed history series in the United States, the educational and political campaigns around the first 3 films contributed to legislative change, educational initiatives, and the declassification of federally held documents. She also works in education and is a cultural safety consultant in Australia and the USA, leading holistic culturally safe and responsive practice in education, film, arts and media, government, health and corporate sectors. Rachel is married to former land rights lawyer and social justice advocate, David Selvarajah Vadiveloo, and together they have three children. She is the oldest daughter of Debby and George Edwardson.