Searchers 2016

In an Inuit community, the elders determine that four men—leader Kupak Joey Sarpinak and followers Aulla Jonah Qunaq and Tulumaq Paul-Dylan Ivalu and Timauti Travis Kunnuk—are guilty of murder, lechery, and hoarding food. Because of their crimes, they are exiled from the band and left to wander the Arctic waste, a harsh landscape that will test their endurance and the fragile bonds of their community.

Nearby, the family of Kuanana Benjamin Kunuk and his wife Ailla Jocelyne Immaroitok works to raise their children within the warmth of extended kin. As Kuanana heads out to hunt caribou, an elder instructs him to take the young Siku Joseph Uttak as his hunting partner, though Kuanana’s own son Angutii Roger Taqqaugaq also longs to accompany them, hoping to prove his capability in the harsh country.

While they are away, Kupak and Aulla seize the opportunity to strike—ambushing Ailla and her daughter in Kuanana’s igloo and taking them captive. The assault shatters the quiet of the settlement and leaves a trail of fear in its wake. When Kuanana and Siku return to the ruins, they find the igloo in ruin and the elder mortally wounded; the elder’s dying breath reveals what has happened and entrusts a totem to Kuanana to summon a spirit guide, Kallulik, the loon. With his last message, the elder dies, leaving Kuanana to navigate a path he never anticipated.

Calling for Kallulik, Kuanana hears the loon’s cry and follows its direction toward the captives. Kallulik and Siku head out with sled dogs and a telescope, pursuing the kidnapper pair through the endless whiteness. Inside the struggle, Ailla and her daughter fight to resist and to escape, clinging to hope even as the captors tighten their grip. Kupak’s omen-like warnings—an ominous tone in his ear—prompt Kupak to send Tulumaq to check whether they are being followed, signaling the intensity of the chase.

From a distance, Kuanana spots the captors with his telescope, and Tulumaq and Timauti become aware that they are being tracked. The pursuit forces a dangerous split: Kuanana and Siku divide, each believing they can reach the end of the road in time to save the family. In a tense moment, Kuanana discovers his daughter, who is hidden and bound, and he frees her, instructing her to cower behind a ridge while he continues the search for Ailla.

A brutal clash unfolds as Tulimaaq and Timauti close in. Siku is attacked by Aulla, but Kuanana arrives from behind and shoots Aulla, saving Siku. With the danger momentarily reduced, Kuanana sends Siku to protect his sister behind the ridge while he presses on to find Ailla. The confrontation continues as Kupak finally closes in, but with no bullets left, he and Kuanana fight hand to hand. In a final turn of fate, Ailla emerges from behind the shelter and, with resolve, kills Kupak. The captives are freed, and the family is joyfully reunited, their bond strengthened by the trial they endured together in the vast Arctic world.