The Northern Documentary - Part 1

The art of feature-length documentary was born in Canada's North. It started with Robert J. Flaherty and his film Nanook of the North.

For a while now, I have been on the hunt for a shorter documentary-type film. Thanks to Neil Hartling of Nahanni River Adventures/Canadian River Expeditions, I was able to watch it this morning.

Here's a brief synopsis:

The short film, Nahanni, focuses on the legend of a lost gold mine and a river in the Northwest Territories that lured men to their doom. Albert Faille, an aging prospector, set out time and again to find hidden gold.

Having lived in the area, I was lucky enough to meet people who knew him. Some say he was kind and helpful, knew his stuff, and have nothing but high praise for him. Some say he was mean. Some say he was scary and some say he was crazy. Some say he wasn't really looking for gold; he just liked getting out on the land. Opinions of Albert Faille depend on who you ask, but that's how these things go; we all remember something different about the people we've meet. In many ways, though, Faille transcended the "I remember him" stories into the stuff of legend.

Watch the mini-documentary yourself and learn a little more about a character you won't soon forget.