Bring a pillow and your comfy clothes, and settle in for an evening of Indigenous short film at Objectspace.

This screening will take place within our current exhibition by Joar Nango and collaborators, Building an archive of Indigenous architecture. The exhibition includes a variety of video works from experimental shorts through to Nango and Ken Are Bongo’s documentary series Post-Capitalist Architecture TV.

To extend the storytelling of this exhibition project, we invited Sámi and Finnish audiovisual artist Sunná Nousuniemi to compile a programme of short films for this special evening viewing – from Sápmi to Aotearoa.

Sunná’s selection of 9 short films explores themes of home, belonging and the art of storytelling through movement and will run for a total of 80 minutes.

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Film programme:

Sámi Čalbmelaset
Sápmi/Norway, 2024, 3 min.
Genre: Sci-fi
Director: Eila Marie Engkvist Muotka
Language: North Sámi; subt. English
Age rating: G
Description: In an urban Arctic landscape, a man finds a pair of glasses on the street that help him gain a forgotten perception.

Bivdit luossa máhccat - Asking the Salmon to Return
Sápmi, Finland, 2022, 6 min.
Genre: Experimental 
Director: Jenni Laiti
Language: No dialogue
Age rating: G
Bivdit luosa máhccat raises awareness to the cultural and ecological importance of the Atlantic salmon to the Sámi people, in light of the species' detrimental decline due to the impacts of climate change across the Arctic. The word ‘bivdit’ in Sámi language means to catch something, but also to ask for or request something from someone, alluding to the Sámi approach of ‘asking for permission’ as opposed to extractive approaches to the environment.

Kauri
Aotearoa, 2019, 5 min.
Genre: Documentary
Directors: Raymond Edwards, Lada Suomenrinne & Alexandra Lazarowich
Language: Te Reo Mãori, subt. English
Age rating: G
The Kauri trees of Aotearoa are one of the longest-living tree species in the world, as well as the largest but now the Kauri trees are suffering from dieback disease as a result of European imperialism. This documentary is a reminder that the death of Kauri trees is a warning sign that should not be disregarded. Kauri was created as part of the three-day Native Slam film challenge at the Māoriland Film Festival.

Máilmmitkus
Sápmi/Finland, 2025, 8 min.
Genre: Experimental
Directors: Hans Pieski, Arttu Nieminen
Language: North Sámi, English, subt. English
Age rating: G
Surreal journey into the complex relationship between Indigenous peoples and the unstoppable force of technological progress. The film depicts various stages of technological development and their impact on Indigenous populations.

Eatnanvuloš lottit / Birds in the Earth
Sápmi / Finland, 2018, 10 min.
Genre: Dance
Director: Marja Helander
Language: No dialogue
Age rating: G
Sámi ballet dancers Birit and Katja Haarla dance through the villages and ancient forests of Sápmi all the way to where the important decisions are made. The polarity of nature and the western way of life is filtered through quirky humour.

Rieban – The Fox
2023, Sápmi, Norway, 8 min.
Director: Sara Margrethe Oskal
Language: North Sámi, subt. English
Age rating: G
In this music-filled road movie, a hungry fox faced with poor luck in hunting resorts to cunning when he encounters a fisherman on his way home with a big catch.

Ribadit – Pulling in the belt
Sápmi/Norway, 2019, 9 min.
Director/Producer: Elle Sofe Sara
Languages: North Sámi, subt. English
Ribadit (Pulling in the belt) was a courting tradition in the Sámi village, Guovdageaidnu. In this film we meet two elders who have experienced this. Director Elle Sofe is orchestrating this tradition to life with Sámi youth and dancers.

ÁHKUIN
Sápmi, Finland, United States, 2024, 20 min.
Genre: Documentary, experimental
Directors: Radio-JusSunná / Sunná Nousuniemi & Guhtur Niillas Niillas Rita Duomis / Tuomas Kumpulainen
Language: North Sámi, subt. English
Age rating: 7
A transcendent and playful documentary journey follows three generations of a Sámi family united across time via the grandmother’s joik. Longing, a flamingo and a riverside landscape guide the descendants into a new era, encouraging them to turn to the teachings of their ancestors.

Dajan
Sápmi, Finland, Norway, 2025, 5min.
Genre: Music video
Directors: Alice Jektevik & Kim Saarinen
Language: North Sámi, no subtitles
Age rating: G
Consisting of two songs, “Gulan” and “Dajan”, from Hildá Länsman & Tuomas Norvio’s new album, the music video mirrors artist and yoiker Hildá Länsman's personal journey in finding her way back home to Sápmi, and discovering the strength to say no to things she does not want for herself.  The North Sámi word “Dajan” directly translates to “I say”, and the song invites you to move freely in the world to the beat of your own decisions.

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Radio-JusSunná / Sunná Nousuniemi (they/them) is a queer Sámi and Finnish audiovisual artist and storyteller, born and raised in Anár, Sápmi. Their debut short documentary Boso mu ruovttoluotta (Breathe Me Back to Life) received the Best Short Film Award at Nuuk International Film Festival and The Moving People and Images Award at the Love & Anarchy Film Festival in 2022. She is the co-director of ÁHKUIN (Mountainfilm 2024). Using film, discussion, music, memes and duodji elements as their tools, Nousuniemi explores different ways of participating in building more liveable communities through art.

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This event is planned to accompany Building an archive of Indigenous architecture: Joar Nango and collaborators. The Sápmi to Aotearoa project is supported by Nordisk Kulturfond’s Globus initiative. The exhibition is supported by The Warren Trust.