Thomassie Mangiok

Thomassie Mangiok, Director for Ivujivik’s Nuvviti school, uses his knack for graphic design to promote language resurgence by developing films, apps and educational materials.

Through his company, Pirnoma Technologies, and a grant from Avataq Cultural Institute, Mangiok has produced an app called Inuit unikkausiliurusingit in which users follow the story and travels of an Inuit family in the Arctic. Inuit unikkausiliurusingit loosely translates to “how Inuit create their stories" [1]. In an interview Mangiok explains his inspiration, “We’re surrounded by English content — the information we’re absorbing through television and video games is always about another culture. I’m trying to give them something about our own culture.” Thomassie Mangiok’s app, comics and videos reflect a passion for his language — Inuttitut. His app Sunaunna helps users properly pronounce Inutitut words [2]. Mangiok has also worked on comic strip with funding from Ungaluk, Nunavik’s crime-prevention program [3]. Each comic’s storyline tackles a different theme, such as bullying, parenting, drug use, reckless behaviour or selfishness.