PBS’s Independent Lens Acquires One with the Whale

PBS’s Independent Lens has acquired the new feature documentary One with the Whale, which spotlights a Siberian Yupik community that has found itself in the crosshairs of climate change and environmental racism.

Filmed over two years on St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, One with the Whale spotlights the centuries-old traditions, values and lifestyles of the Siberian Yupik village known as Gambell. As the tight-knit community grapples with the increasingly damaging impact of climate change on their environment and way of life, their core customs and practices as traditional hunter-gathers come under attack by online activists far from the Bering Sea.

Co-directed by Pete Chelkowski (Life Below Zero: First Alaskans, Ocean Warriors) and environmental journalist Jim Wickens (Ecostorm), One with the Whale was produced by Native Movement, Vitamin Sea Productions and Actual Films (An Inconvenient Sequel, Athlete A), in partnership with the village of Gambell and AL via Sivuqaq with several community members serving as producers on the film, including Yaari Walker, Aakapak Apassingok and Nalu Apassingok.

Tracy Ricard, Justine Nagan, Bonni Cohen, and Bright West Entertainment’s Alex Lieberman and Gary Lieberman are the executive producers.

“One with the Whale captures a family and a community struggling to save their ancient culture in the modern world,” said Independent Lens executive producer Lois Vossen. “A powerful collaboration between white and indigenous team members across Alaska, the continental U.S. and Europe, it’s an exhilarating and beautifully shot exploration of environmental justice, decolonization, teenage mental health, the dark glow of social media, forced diaspora in this time of extreme economic inequality, and racial genocide. Despite the weight of these consequential topics, the subjects in One with the Whale are a joy to watch.”

Walker added, “We have lived here for thousands of years, but outsiders have never wanted to hear our Native voice or respect our ancestral knowledge. Those days are finished. One with the Whale is here to share our story with the world in hopes of making it a better place for everyone. We have co-existed with Bowhead whales for generations. They are sacred to us. Their flesh gives us life. I hope our film will educate people about what whale hunting means to us.”

Added Chelkowski, “After spending such intimate moments with the Apassingok family, I’ve learned that Indigenous ancestral knowledge is unbelievably powerful. Its ability to create purpose and provide direction in the face of the most brutal adversity is unmatched, and this film underscores how cherishing, respecting and protecting it will be central to our survival as a species.”

Added Wickens, “We hope this film will encourage conservationists to reconsider their attacks on traditional hunting practices and to instead focus efforts on the worsening climate emergency, which threatens the future of marine mammals and the Arctic coastal communities that depend upon them.”