Aahana Swrup
The Netflix sitcom ‘North of North’ centers around a small town in the Canadian Arctic, where a young Inuk woman decides to take back the reigns of her life—a task made only a little complicated in her tight-knit, gossip-loving community. After wasting away too many of her years known only as Ting’s wife or Bun’s mother, Siaja decides to undertake drastic life changes by embarking on a self-discovery journey. However, for her, this ends up looking like an embarrassing public debacle, followed by attempts to convince Southerner Helen to hire her at the local community center. To make matters worse, a familiar face from her mother, Neevee’s life, makes his way back into town, bringing even more family complications for Siaja. Thus, the protagonist finds herself strapped in for a wild ride, all within her hometown of Ice Cove, Nunavut.
Ice Cove, Nunavut: A Fictional Town With Authentic Roots
Even though Ice Cove is a fictional town in the real Canadian region of Nunavut, the on-screen area’s origins remain rich and rooted in reality. Stacey Aglok MacDonald and Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, the creators of ‘North of North,’ wanted to create a comedy show that centers around a young, modern Inuk mother who finds herself on a complicated late coming-of-age path. In doing so, the duo were eager to create a narrative that felt authentic to their own Inuit roots while also offering a sense of resonance to the overarching Inuit community. For the same reason, they decided to set the story in a fictional town where they were free to showcase the diverse nature of the Indigenous community.
Thus, Aglok MacDonald and Arnaquq-Baril decided to create Ice Cove, a fictitious town that draws inspiration from a number of places. At first glance, there is an evident overlap between the on-screen town and Whale Cove, a real-life settlement in Nunavut. Nonetheless, save for similar names, the two towns don’t seem to share much else in common. Alternatively, Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut and the place of residence for both the creators, remains a much more prominent source of inspiration.
“Our town is fictional, and we chose that consciously because we wanted to be able to take the best parts of small, tiny towns and the best parts of Iqaluit, the big city,” Arnaquq-Baril told Broadview. “And something we love about living in Iqaluit is that it really is a diverse community. We wanted our fictional town to have that vibe where there’s Inuit from the western Arctic, (and) Inuit from the eastern Arctic.” Additionally, the bulk of the filming for the show was also done in Iqaluit, with the local community of actors and artisans making up the background cast and crew on set. Coincidentally enough, Anna Lambe, the lead actress, also happens to be from the same city. Thus, despite the fictionalized aspects of Ice Cove, the town retains authenticity through its realistic portrayal of the Inuit community and culture.
Read More: Is North of North Based on a True Story?
