ATTLA

RECOMMENDED - Educational Media Reviews Online | BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE - American Indian Film Festival | BEST INDIGENOUS FEATURE - BendFilm Festival Native American Studies • Sociology • U.S. History • American Studies • Sociology of Sport • Environmental Studies Date of Completion: 2019 | Run Time: 60 minutes​​ | Language:  English | Captions: Yes | Includes: Transcript & Discussion Guide | Director: Catharine Axley | Producers: Melissa Langer & Kristine Stolakis | Associate Producer & Cultural Adviser: Evon Peter ATTLA tells the gripping but little-known story of George Attla, an Alaska Native dogsled racer who, with one good leg and fierce determination, rose to international fame and became a legendary sports hero. Part dog whisperer, ingenious businessman, and teenage heartthrob, George defied characterization during a unique period of history when Western education, economics, and culture penetrated the Alaskan village lifestyle and forever changed the state with the discovery of oil in the late 1960s. ATTLA interweaves George’s story into the final chapter of his life, as he emerges from retirement to train his twenty-year-old grandnephew, Joe, to restore a village tradition by competing in the world’s largest sprint dogsled race.