The Current - North of North is back with Season 2!

Episode Date: September 9, 2026

We speak with the creators of the series North of North as they launch Season 2 after the show became an international hit. Stacey Aglok MacDonald and Alethea Arnaquq-Baril tell us about what it's like to film a comedy in Iqaluit, about the good things, and the challenges faced by those living in Canada's North.

My name is Siyaya, and I live in the most beautiful place on Earth. Seven months ago, I blew up my life, and a lot has shifted since then. Everyone is moving forward. I'm still working on that. And that's me. Welcome to Ice Cove. Where are the Penguins? That's Antarctica. We're the other one. North of North. Stream now on CBC Gem. This is a CBC podcast.

Hello, I'm Matt Galloway, and this is the current podcast. Where are you going? Fixing tourism before this place turns into bingo nights and sad bake sales. Do you even have a plan? Greenlandic mask dancing with Auntie Vicki. I'm thinking lights and music and a fog machine. Siaya has big plans in season two of the worldwide hit North of North. For those of you who haven't seen it yet, she is the show's main character, a young Enuk mother navigating big life changes in the small.

fictional Arctic community of Ice Cove. And in this new season, CIA is on a mission to help her town and herself in the process. Since when are you doing level 10 cultural programming for tourists with equipment we don't even have? Since I realized I've been doing the same small things for months now. I need to go bigger if I want to be bigger. I blew up my whole life and I'm still just an assistant handing out pamphlets. North of North is an award-winning joint production by CBC, APTN and Netflix, and it is the vision of Stacey Agluck MacDonald and Alethea Arnacoc Baril, who are its creators, executive producers and writers. Stacey's with me in our Toronto studio and Alitia is in our Akhalawit's studio. Good morning to you both.

Ollacoon. O'Lakgood. Good morning. What does it feel like, Stacey? This is, as I said, this is a huge hit. Season 1 was top 10 on Netflix, the most ever watched show on CBC Gem. What does it like to create a hit show? I actually didn't know. We were at the most watched show on CBC Jim.

I think for the longest time, it just felt surreal. Like, it wasn't quite sinking in. Also, like, we're still working so hard, just never stop. So, like, once in a while, we'd look up and see what was going on and just be stunned. Elithia, when you looked up, what did you see? When did you realize that this was a hit? I think it was when I was walking into the post office. and someone from across the street just yelled,

we're so proud of you. And I have no idea who it was. It was just awesome because everyone around just kind of smiled and waved and were like happy for us. So global success. Yay, awesome. But it feels really good to have it in your home community too. Yeah, for sure.

What do you think, I mean, and I want to talk about the home community, but there are fans in Japan who love this program. There are fans in Europe and South America that love this program. Why has it connected in the way that it has? I mean, I think, you know, as a young in a woman who had the privilege of traveling around the world, I've always seen a sort of fascination from people, like when they hear I'm from the Arctic or from Nunavut and that I'm Inuit or, you know,

sometimes I didn't know what Inuit was. I'd have to use the e-word to like orient them. But there's always just been such an organic fascination, I think, with the Arctic itself. and then us just putting a human face to it and people getting to experience the Arctic, not from the outside, but coming in with us. I think it's feeding the fascination and humanizing an icy, icy part of the world.

But Alethea, you said something really interesting earlier, which was that it was that comment at the post office, somebody in your own community shouting you out that really meant something to you. And you said, as well, these are your words, there were times when it's like this is just for, you know, It's okay if you don't get it. I mean, it was our goal from the start to make a show that is a global success but still speaks to our own people.

And, you know, we're trying to entertain and give all the feels to our own people but also to the world. We just want to be connected. I think this show is a lot about community and connecting with each other. And it's also us as a community trying to connect with the outside world as well, make each other laugh, make each other correct. I watched the first few episodes of the second season. I don't want to give too much away. But when you slide in something that seems like it comes from the news of oil water advisory, for example, into the storyline. Who is that for?

Is it for people at home to say, listen, we know what's going on and we want to acknowledge that? I mean, we decided from the start that we weren't going to be trying to educate people in a way where it was like, you know, a lesson or a moral of the story kind of thing. We just want to entertain each other and laugh, but also make it feel real. And so, you know, when we're just thinking... And boil water advisories are very real. They're just so real. I just saw another one pop up in my email. It's more of like an eye roll.

I would say like, oh, another one. Okay, here we go. Yeah, it's just a part of our lives at this point. But also to point out, I mean, for people who are watching it, that, yeah, this community, which is beautiful and stunning and filled with amazing people, still has to deal with this kind of stuff as well. Absolutely, because we've got so much fresh water in the Arctic, but the locations,

of all our towns were not chosen by Inuit, they were chosen by colonizers, almost always, against the advice of Inuit, like, let's not put a town here because it's a horrible place to land a plane. Don't listen to them. And then, you know, they're just issues with travel all over the Arctic. There's issues with access to water, to electricity, to everything, because the colonizers came in and just never ever, they were all Helens, you know? All Helens.

What kind of pressure, Stacey, when you're making a show like this and the community is invested in it. What sort of pressure does I put on you? I mean, for the first season, we couldn't tell people what we were doing. They just knew that we were making a show, nobody really had the details. So I think, you know, Alethe and I have been making films in the Arctic for 20 years, so they know what we do. And there's already a level of trust and respect built there. But it was never of the scale. And so I think us running around, shutting roads down, and sometimes our crew unknowingly blocking the water trucks so like a house can't get their water for the day, which is a big issue and we had some

growing pains and whatnot. And I think that a lot of our town was kind of like, this better be worth it. And come season two, everybody was just so happy to have us back shooting. You were saying as well, when you came in here into the studio this morning, you were saying as well that part of this is about the pressure of the investment that people are making into a program like this as well. And that people are going to look at you, now they look at you, young filmmakers, people who want to be filmmakers in the north and say, well, they did it like we could do it.

But did you understand that as you were making even season one? Yeah, I mean, the big pressure of it all was this fear that in every part of making a TV show, especially in the beginning, it feels like it could fall apart. It's such an incredibly competitive and hard industry, and things go away all the time. And we were the first indigenous show trying to do what we were trying to do, and with Netflix Canada, and we got CBC, it felt like such a massive deal that we were immensely afraid of screwing it up

for the rest of our community, because then if it falls apart, will these networks and stuff want to work with other indigenous filmmakers and stuff? So we were, I think we were carrying a burden for a little bit there and a real like desire to, like we have to make this work. We were very determined.

Well, you didn't screw it up. We should be clear. But Alethea, how did you think about that? It was interesting. We were in Nichela, like a year ago, and everywhere we went, people talked about this show. Somebody was connected to something, somebody's auntie did this, someone sew this, they provided sandwiches from this place.

How did you think about that? I mean, it was insane pressure and it shouldn't be. It's not really fair pressure that we were under. It took way too long for this country to invest in indigenous show to this level. And we wanted to blow the doors open for other Canadian indigenous creators. And, you know, the moment I heard Anna Lam, our lead actor, talking about how young, you know, growing up today, we'll never know a world where her character didn't exist,

where this show didn't exist. I just bawled my eyes out because, you know, we had to dream outside of what had ever happened in this country. And, you know, I think Stacey and our producing partner, Miranda, have really taught me to feel like I, you know, why not? Why not me? Why not bigger? Why not more amazing, more beautiful?

Why not? Even if it's never been done before, why not? And that is something that I'll carry you with me for the rest of my life. And I hope that young indigenous creators across the country will look at her show and think the same to see themselves up on screen and think, of course. Why not? That's amazing. You also get to do really cool things like highlight clothes and fashion and earrings and music. You laugh when I say that.

What is that like? Because, again, those local creators see their creativity kind of put on this international sort of stage. It's one of the funnest parts of the job, to be honest. Like, we make each other laugh all day in the writing room on set and through post. And it's really a joyful job. But like the little tingling, delicious, happy feel is strongest for me when we're getting to pick wardrobe and, you know, music. When we created the budget for this show, we insisted on a line in the budget specifically for earrings. And our business affairs team were like, oh, yeah, I've got a fit on a fender wardrobe.

We don't need a separate category. And we're like, no, we want it. We want it in there. Film budgets. For two reasons. We just want the satisfaction of seeing it in there. And the other reason is we want to protect it and always know that it's not being reduced. In the end, it still wasn't enough.

and I had to land like 65 pairs of my own earrings. And it's been really rewarding to see people around the world be like, you all don't actually dress like that, right? They just imagine that we must have created this fictitious world where people dressed this well. But it's real. That's how in a new dress. We do outerwear like nobody else on the planet.

Tell me about season two. You mentioned Analam. And she said, you think the mess can't get any messier, and then it does. Tell me about the mess in season two, Stacey. Well, I mean, in season one, we meet Siaya when she's just blown up her life. So there's an adrenaline, an uncertainty. When we come into season two, you know, it's a few months later, and we're in deep winter, and it is cold.

And she's a little more settled, but also kind of like, what is my life? Who do I actually want to be? What do I actually want? and it's about CIA really having to dig in and do the work that she needs to do to level up her life and do the big things that she wants to do. And in doing so, CIA is CIA and she's impulsive, always with a good heart and good intentions, but she does make rash decisions. And she gets herself into a few pickles, including kind of getting involved in something later in the season that takes us to a side of ice cream. cove that we've never seen before. I've only seen the first few episodes, so now I'm intrigued.

Alethe, can you talk about, it looks beautiful. And you have said that when you were shooting, I can't use the word that you use, but you said it was cold as F. It was. It really was. It, you know, it was really hard on the casting crew. But everyone really held together, kept each other warm, reminded each other to keep moving around and touching each other's faces to warm up spots that were getting frostbite.

It was a real challenge, but holy hell does it look good on camera? It does. It's so proud. I've always want, like, any time I watch something that's supposed to be winter and you don't see real frost coming out of their mouths, you know, when they speak, you don't see frost on their eyelashes if they've been out there for a while. They've got the necks open on their jackets. Like they're not, you know, bundling up and buttoning up every little crevice that they can.

close up, it just doesn't look real. And, you know, it is very, very real on our show. And I love, you can see it, you can hear it, you can feel it. My name is Siyaya, and I live in the most beautiful place on earth. Seven months ago, I blew up my life, and a lot has shifted since then. Everyone is moving forward. I'm still working on that. And that's me. Welcome to Ice Cove. We're are the penguins? That's Aunt Arctica. We're the other one. North of North.

Stream now on CBC Jam. We talked about some of the pickles that CIA finds herself in. One is she puts on this Greenlandic dance show with her aunt Vicki's help. And there's a moment at the end of that episode that I want to play. Have a listen to this. Everyone keeps moving forward. My ex, my mom, Kuk. And I'm still here in the same spot.

Trying to prove I'm ready. You know what Pilim Maksanaq is, right? Something about learning. That's part of it. It's like forging yourself into what you want to become. You can learn from people. You can listen to them. But do the thing that feels true to you.

Even if no one claps right away, trust your gut, not the noise. And whatever you're searching for, don't give up. Alethea, you said earlier that it's not about lessons or anything like that. But that advice of keep searching and reinventing yourself is really important, it feels like, for her. Yeah, we really wanted that native auntie. It's such an indigenous thing to have an auntie come in and give you shit in the most loving way. Sorry, am I allowed to say that.

You just did. That's fine. To give you heck in the most loving way. instead of just making her feel terrible, she course corrects her in a way that's so loving and so real and will teach her something for the rest of her life. Do you ever have an auntie, Stacey, who told you to trust your gut? That seems like really important advice. Yes, of course. I've been blessed with many wonderful aunties in my life, both in my hometown of Kogloctok, where I grew up and in Ikhaluit. and I'm so blessed to see my 18-year-old daughter.

Her life is so full of aunties as well, and I see them loving her and also teasing her and giving her advice as she's going off to university for the first time this year. It's just such a part of life. Native aunties are the best. Oh, love a native auntie. What did you tell your daughter when she goes off to university? Because it's aunties, but it's also you.

I said, well, I was like, watch out for pretendians. Also important advice. Watch out for boys. And just you do you. Focus on yourself, focus on what you want to be who you want to be. And love yourself. Sounds so simple, but it's something I admire the most to both states is the way she parents her daughter, that you do you line. so short, so important, so powerful, and sometimes really hard to do as a parent.

The relationship that the two of you have is fascinating. Like in this conversation, you're picking up on what each other says. You kind of finish each other's sentences. You've worked together for a long time, but you've also pushed each other, right? I mean, I think I love documentary. I still do, and I still have docs that I'm making and want to make. But I also limited myself to that world for 20 years because it's what I knew had been done. what I was allowed to do. You know, I was pitching documentaries to, you know, broadcasters around the world and to CBC, to be honest, and being told, why would people care about that from this tiny community and, you know, having trouble getting people to imagine our stories mattering even on the scale of a small documentary. So the idea that we could do a big, glossy comedy, just it never occurred to me that we could.

gun for that. I wouldn't have pictured myself ever doing comedy. Like, that's, that's not me. I'm a very serious documentary filmmaker. But Stacy and I are best friends in addition to business partners, and she knew I love comedy. I watch stand up. I watch comedies. That's like a huge amount of my screen time. And we just hanging out with each other and socializing. She's like, you are funny, especially at 2 in the morning and you've had a glass of wine or two. Very funny. It's just a part of myself that I didn't recognize or think could be part of my professional career. And I am so, so grateful that I got brought into that process because it's so much fun.

It's such a great way to spend your life. That's really powerful. Stacey, how do you see that relationship? I'd done comedy before. I did, you know, seven seasons of an all Inuktu language comedy show that aired on APTN. And every season of that show, we were trying to think bigger, learn more, do more. And so when Kanogli ended, that feeling didn't end of, okay, now what's next? What's bigger?

How can I take? What, everything that I've learned and go further. And, you know, Alethea, Miranda and I, we made the Grizzlies together, which was a 10-year-long project with a very heavy subject matter. and coming out of the Grizzlies, we knew that we wanted to do something that was a lot more joyful and funny and felt like something of our community because the Grizzlies is just one part of our story in the Arctic and it's a real thing. But the Arctic that we experience every day is so colorful. It's cold out, but it's so warm. And I think Alethea and I, having grown up there and still are living there, just wanted to come together and make something that felt real to us.

And I think that when Alethea and I get together, magic kind of seems to happen. It's like fireworks. The ground starts shifting. And I think we started to really feel that, like, hey, I think if we actually like really come together and work together, we could kind of move mountains. And I'm so grateful for that partnership that I have with Alethea. That's awesome. Yeah. Moving mountains.

Let me ask you two quick things before I let you go. One is just where this show lands in how we're talking about this country right now. One of the things that happened when we were up north in In Inuit, is we were talking to people about how folks down south don't understand anything really about what life really is. Like they look at a map and they see, we were talking to somebody and they said they see empty spaces. And those aren't empty spaces. Those are places where people have lived forever.

People continue to live and they have names for. for every corner of that place. We're talking about the country in a different way now in this moment, where it's elbows up and all for Canada. How do you think, Stacey, your show fits into how we think about the country? Or how would you want it to fit into how we think about this country? You know, as an indigenous person, I will say that I'm not one to often boast about Canada. I'm not necessarily

Arms up Like proud Canada Woo! In part because And we heard this as well In part because of how people in the North have been treated

I mean They used as human flag poles Absolutely But I will say that These days I have been feeling a little bit Proud of the country And I think that

We're making some amazing TV shows right now Like the world I think is looking at Canada in a different way and we got heated rivalry, we got north of north, and they're both shows that are about minority groups trying to live their life as beautifully and as joyfully and as honestly as possible. And I think that it's moving people

and that Canada is seeing themselves represented in a way that they haven't seen before and seeing stories that they haven't even seen before from within their own country. And it's also making them feel, proud of who we are and the stories that we have. And I think it just opens up the door for like, if there are these two stories that have been made from groups that we don't often see stories made, like, what else is out there? What other stories that does Canada have that we haven't

given a stage to yet? But if people are willing to take risks on other people from other perspectives, from other parts of the country that we don't often see, I think Canada is going to continue to surprise itself and tell amazing stories that the world is going to be really interested in. Lathia, how do you think about what you have created? I mean, I think the Helen character is really interesting, right? She's a white woman running a small town in the Arctic, and she's really funny and a little bit absurd and quite annoying at times and problematic almost always.

But she manages to be endearing to the people around her, and I think to our. audiences around the world. And I hope her characters are really sinking in for a lot of white Canadians that you can be likable and care and want to do good for people and still be problematic and in the way. I hope that, you know, seeing these indigenous, beautiful indigenous characters striving for more, striving for control of their lives and for joy and happiness and to build and to grow. I hope people see that and see how in the way Helen can be and let that be an example on an individual personal level. Like, I don't want to be a Helen. Am I in the way? Can I lean out? And then on a global level, I hope our show is an example of

how important it is for Canadian storytelling to exist for us to tell very Canadian stories to ourselves and to the outside world. Because at the moment, I feel. feel like a strong national identity is a matter of national security. And if we're not supporting indigenous stories, yes, but also stories from minority communities around the country, then, you know, that fabric of our cultural identity isn't as strong. And, you know, people are talking about separating from Canada in this country. It's absurd and can't happen without indigenous agreement. So it's just not going to happen. But I think we should all. pay attention to that and recognize that we need to be connected and on the same page about more things

and not wasting our time with, you know, allowing ourselves to be distracted by sensational things the way we see in the States so much. And taking care of our democracy, taking care of journalism, taking care of Canadian storytelling. I love the show and I can't wait for people to see the second season. Congratulations. You have made something remarkable. and I love the success of it as well. Well done. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Stacey Agloch, MacDonald, and Alethea Arnacouk Barilla are the creators,

executive producers and writers of North of North. The first two episodes of season two are available now on CBC Gem. You can also find the show on CBC television, APTN, and coming this fall to Netflix. You've been listening to the current podcast. My name is Matt Galloway. Thanks for listening. I'll talk to you soon. For more CBC podcasts,

Go to cBC.ca slash podcasts.