TV Nunavut could hit airwaves as early as 2017

A new Nunavut television serviceis closer to becominga reality and Inuit producers says it would make Inuktitut content more accessible.

"It's been a dream for a number of people for a number of years. Now it seems like an imminent reality," saysAlethea Arnaquq-Baril, a producer and director from Iqaluit who sits on the TV Nunavut board.

She hopes she and her teamcan take TV Nunavutidea from a concept and turn it into a cultural force.

"A lot of Inuit appreciate the Inuktitut content that we already have, like Igalaaq and the APTN, but it is just not enough for Nunavumiut. The majority of Inuit speak at least some Inuktitut and the vast majority want to speak better Inuktitut. And the amount of content that APTN and CBC provide is just not enough," she says.

Arnaquq-Barilsays the channelwould also allow young Inuit to see work produced by Inuit andgiveyoungproducersmore opportunities.

"I am always getting bugged by people, how can I see your work how can I get a copy of it," she says.

TV Nunavut is made up of a group of partners, including the Ajjiit Nunavut Media Association, the Inuit Broadcasting Corporation, the Nunavut independent TV production community and Nunavut Film. The groups started discussing joining together several years ago and TV Nunavut was founded in 2014.

TV Nunavut now has an executive director and they're developing programming and language policies.

If the CRTC approves the licence, the group of partners will have two years to launch TV Nunavut. The channel could be availablesometime in 2017.

Producer Stacey Aglok MacDonald, originally from Kugluktuk, is creating an Inuktitut comedy show. She says it's a program that could air on TV Nunavut some day.

"If something like TV Nunavut happens it all of a sudden creates more opportunity for people to get into the industry and start making TV shows," she says.

Aglok Macdonald already has a broadcaster picking up the show she's working on now, but 2017 is still open and her team has lots of ideas. She says the channel would give young producers opportunities to be creative andtake more risks.

"We might want to create a new TV show next year. Then all of sudden if there was TV Nunavut there would be that much more opportunity to get the support."