I PITY THE COUNTRY

A startling blend of archival and contemporary imagery pays homage to Indigenous sovereignty and resistance in this film set to Leanne Betasamosake Simpson’s inspired version of Willie Dunn’s classic song “I Pity the Country.”
I Pity the Country is an urgent and joyful remix sparked by Leanne Betasamosake Simpson’s release of her 2021 album Theory of Ice, which features a powerful rendition of Willie Dunn’s classic song. Mi’kmaq/Scottish filmmaker and singer-songwriter Dunn was part of the National Film Board’s groundbreaking Indian Film Crew. His 1968 debut film The Ballad of Crowfoot was the institution’s first Indigenous-directed film and is considered to be Canada’s first music video. McNally and Jackson pay homage to Dunn’s technique of using archival images, updating it by juxtaposing archival footage with contemporary footage from celebrated Indigenous filmmakers Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, Helen Haig-Brown, Caroline Monnet, and Caleb Ellison-Dysart.
Co-Directed by
Lisa Jackson & Conor McNally
Edited by
Conor McNally
From a concept by
Lisa Jackson
Terra Long
Leanne Betasamosake Simpson
Associate Producer
Brittany Ryan
Produced by
Lisa Jackson & Jon Montes
We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.
(c) Door Number 3 Productions, 2023.
doornumber3.ca/