FAQ

Three teenage Inuit boys Qalli (Josiah Patkotak), Aivaaq (Frank Qutuq Irelan), and James (John Miller) in Barrow, Alaska decide to go hunting together for natchiq (seal). When a fight breaks out between James and Aivaaq, James hits Aivaaq with a shovel and then goes to hit him again while he's down, Qalli tackles James, intending just to knock him down, but his knife stabs James in the neck, killing him within minutes. When Aivaaq comes to, believing that he is the one who killed James, the boys decide to slide James' body and snowmobile through a hole in the ice and tell everyone that he fell through an unseen crack. As the townfolk and, in particular, Qalli's father Egasak (Teddy Kyle Smith) piece together the truth, Qalli and Aivaaq must wrestle with their guilt.

On the Ice is based on a screenplay by Andrew Okpeaha MacLean.

Yes. Barrow is located in the North Slope Borough of Alaska at 71.30° N latitude and 156.78° W longitude. As such, it is 320 miles north of the Arctic Circle. Find a map of Alaska and look along the northern coastline. Barrow sits on a peninsula that juts into the Arctic Ocean. Nearby Point Barrow is the northernmost point in the United States, and the town of Barrow is the northernmost settlement on the whole North American mainland. Google Barrow, Alaska for a variety of photos.

Egasak goes out hunting for natchiq and asks Qalli and Aivaaq come along. He takes them to the spot where it looked like someone dusted the snow, and they stop for lunch there. They talk about Aivaaq's rifle, but no one says anything about the murder. Egasak then suggests that they go up on a nearby ridge to see how far the water is. When they reach the top, they look down to see James' body lying next to the hole in the ice where they dumped him. Egasak demands that Aivaaq tell what he did to James. Finally breaking his silence, Qalli admits that it was he who killed James by accident. Egasak tells Qalli that he can either tie the boat battery to James' body and push him back in the water or bring the body back to Barrow with him...it's Qalli who must decide what kind of person he wants to be. Qalli goes back for his snowmobile, but his father has already left. He loads James' body onto his boat trailer and is surprised when Aivaaq orders him to get away from it. Holding his rifle on Qalli, Aivaaq forces him to bind his own feet with duct tape, then ties his hands together. He tells Qalli that he's not going to let him take the rap for James' death because it was his own fault for starting the fight and pulling out his knife, adding that he thought all of Qalli's lies were meant to protect him (Aivaaq). He tosses Qalli a knife, then takes the snowmobile and starts heading back to Barrow, dragging the boat trailer and James' body behind him. In the final scene, Qalli cuts himself loose and begins the long walk back to the town.