Inuit Futures Ilinniaqtuit

Simeonie Kisa-Knickelbein

Born and raised in Iqaluit, Nunavut, where they currently reside, Simeonie Kisa-Knickelbein is an emerging filmmaker and performer with Red Marrow Media, with special interests in directorial work, acting and storytelling. Shortly after graduating from high school, Simeonie got their start in media working with Stacy Aglok MacDonald on the APTN show Qanurli, where they trained and worked as a camera assistant.

Seeking to pursue further education, Simeonie soon enrolled in the Nunavut Sivuniksavut program in Ottawa in 2017, where they developed a passion for the performing arts. This led to an open audition and eventually they were cast on the hit TV series Outlander, appearing as an extra in the show’s fifth season, which was filmed in Scotland in 2018.

Simeonie has also worked as an Education Facilitator with the Pinnguaq Association since they were a student at Nunavut Sivuniksavut. Part of that role included work as a Twitch streamer, curriculum development, and implementation of the Te(a)ch Program that helps bring STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) programming to underserved communities in Nunavut, Nunavik and northern Ontario.

Most recently, Simeonie has gone on to earn a Third Assistant Director credit on the upcoming science fiction film, Slash/Back, directed by Nyla Innukshuk and slated for release in late 2020. Spending a portion of the summer of 2019 shooting the film in Pangnirtung, Nunavut, where much of their extended family currently lives, Simeonie considered it not only a professional development and artistic opportunity, but also a chance to spend time with relatives.

Joining Inuit Futures in Arts Leadership in the Fall of 2019, Simeonie participated in the Second Annual Gathering at Concordia University in October 2019. That same weekend, they attended the 21st annual Inuit Studies Conference at UQAM, where they met other Ilinniaqtuit and mentors also involved in the project.

“It’s valuable because what I hear from the mentors is that the wish they had had a network like this with other Indigenous people,” they say. “It’s amazing to be able to ask questions to each other and talk to each other without having to over-explain ourselves.”

Looking towards the future, Simeone plans on producing more film and media projects with an Inuit audience in mind. They are currently writing and developing a short film based on their own life experiences and relationships.

Sim at Unikaatuaqtuq |Storytelling, a series of short films they curated for a screening at the McCord Museum during iNuit Blanche in Montreal, October 3, 2019. Still from Killormut (2014, dir. Ulannaq Ingemann). Photo by Enitan Adebowale.

Sim on the set of Slash/Back (2020) (dir. Nyla Innuksuk), where they were the Third Assistant Director, keeping the cast entertained between takes in Pangnirtung, Nunavut. Photo courtesy of Simeonie Kisa-Knickelbein.

Sim in Pangnirtung, Nunavut on the set of Slash/Back (2020) (dir. Nyla Innuksuk), where they were the Third Assistant Director. Photo courtesy of Simeonie Kisa-Knickelbein.

Sim on the set of Slash/Back (2020) (dir. Nyla Innuksuk), where they were the Third Assistant Director, keeping the cast entertained between takes in Pangnirtung, Nunavut. Photo courtesy of Simeonie Kisa-Knickelbein.