Matriarch Movement

This week, host Shayla Oulette Stonechild sits down in Treaty 13 territory in Tkaronto with the powerhouse duo behind North of North — Stacey Aglok MacDonald (writer/producer, Qanurli, co-founder of Red Marrow Media) and Alethea Arnaquq-Baril (filmmaker behind Angry Inuk and Tunniit: Retracing the Lines). Together, the two Inuit creators built Red Marrow Media, produced The Grizzlies, and co-created North of North — the CBC, APTN, and Netflix comedy that broke into Netflix's global top 10 and is now filming its highly anticipated second season. Stacey and Alethea open up about growing up in Nunavut, the matriarchs who shaped them, and what "matriarchy" really means when leadership in Inuit communities has always been fluid and situational rather than a single figurehead. They trace their creative partnership back twenty years — including the story of how Stacey "found" Alethea on Google before they ever met — and get candid about the real emotional and logistical weight of following the heavy, important work of The Grizzlies with something joyful, funny, and unapologetically commercial. This conversation covers the wild specifics of building a global show from the Arctic: pitching networks who'd never seen anything like it, budgeting for real Inuit-designed high fashion (no knockoffs allowed), filming in -40°C, working with an intimacy coordinator on that Season one kiss, and watching their communities go from skeptical to fiercely proud. They also dig into resilience essentials — handling criticism, repairing conflict, and why "no regrets" collaborations are built on trust, not just talent. A rich, funny, moving conversation about matriarchal leadership, Indigenous storytelling, and building something the industry never expected. 00:00 Welcome and meet the guests 01:59 Growing up in Iqaluit 03:10 One word for Season 2: mastery 03:59 Stacey's roots and her badass mom 06:39 What matriarchy means to them 09:43 How they met 11:48 Where their love of storytelling began 15:49 Separate paths, sealskin shorts and building skills 19:55 Teaching themselves to produce 23:18 Making film in the North 25:20 The Grizzlies and deciding to co-produce 29:34 Where North of North began: choosing joy 33:29 Pitching a bold, contemporary Arctic show 37:48 That infamous kiss scene 40:05 What's coming in Season 2 43:39 Acting in -40° 44:50 How Nunavut responded to the show 49:34 Real Inuit fashion on screen 53:18 Advice for emerging filmmakers 56:47 The future of Inuit film 59:03 Being a power couple and taking criticism 01:03:10 Walking into the writing room, and where to watch 01:04:41 Follow the guests, and will there be Season 3? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Matriarch Movement, host Shayla Oulette Stonechild sits down with Anna Lambe — an Inuk actress, host, and emerging filmmaker from Iqaluit, Nunavut, and one of the most compelling Indigenous voices in film and television today. Anna first broke onto the international stage with The Grizzlies, earning a Canadian Screen Award nomination, and followed it with a second nomination for her role as Sarah in Trickster. She now leads the APTN, CBC, and Netflix co-production North of North, which earned her nominations for a Gotham Award and an Independent Spirit Award and won her Best Lead Performer in a Comedy Series at the 2026 Canadian Screen Awards. In this conversation, Anna opens up about her rapid rise in the industry, the pressure of being seen as a spokesperson for her entire community, and what she's learned about herself through playing Siaja. She shares what it was really like filming Season 2 on Arctic sea ice in temperatures below -50°C, why she believes Indigenous stories deserve to center joy instead of trauma, and what matriarchy means to her as an Inuk woman. She closes with powerful advice for the next generation of young Inuk women dreaming of a life in film. Follow Anna Lambe: Instagram @anna.r.b.lambe Watch North of North Season 2: streaming on CBC, APTN, and Netflix This episode is part of Season 6 of Matriarch Movement, Indigenous Voices of This Generation, proudly sponsored by Indigenous Screen Office and YouTube Canada. Thank you to both organizations for supporting this season and helping amplify Indigenous storytellers across Turtle Island. 00:14 – Introduction to Anna Lambe and the episode 01:33 – Anna introduces herself 02:26 – From Trickster and The Grizzlies to leading North of North 03:52 – Following intuition instead of a traditional acting path06:19 – The pressure of representing an entire community 10:51 – Who is Siaja, and how she differs from Anna 13:23 – Filming Season 2 in -50°C on Arctic sea ice 15:54 – Community reception: from embarrassment to being seen as Siaja 18:31 – The future of Indigenous storytelling: centering joy over trauma 22:24 – What matriarchy means to Anna 23:52 – Advice to young Inuk women pursuing film and TV 26:16 – Where to follow Anna + where to watch Season 2 26:31 – Thank you to Indigenous Screen Office and YouTube Canada Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Matriarch Movement Podcast — Season 6: Indigenous Voices of This Generation This episode, host Shayla Oulette Stonechild, sits down with Daniela Riojas — a medicine keeper, educator, musician, and artist whose roots stretch from the Coahuiltecan lands on the Texas-Mexico border to the Peruvian Amazon, where she trained under Shipibo and Ashaninka lineage holders and was initiated into ceremonial plant medicine work. Daniela is the founder of Indígena Medicina, creating sacred containers for healing rooted in Indigenous knowledge, plant medicine, and ceremony. Daniela and Shayla trace her path from growing up "siphoned" between two identities on the border, to activism in San Antonio, to the grief and long search that led her to her teachers in Peru. She opens up about her mother's passing and the ancestral womb work that initiated her deeper into her medicine path, what a dieta actually involves, and how Icaros - the songs of the plants - become a living technology for healing in ceremony. The conversation also turns practical: how to responsibly vet a ceremony facilitator amid the current plant-medicine boom, how she stays grounded through physical discipline and nutrition, and her advice for anyone trying to reconnect with lineage, land, or spirit when the elders and acces s aren't there. They close on matriarchy -Daniela's mother, her sisters, and the mentors who shaped how she leads with what she calls "heart-led advocacy." 01:11 — Guest introduction: Daniela Riojas, medicine keeper and founder of Indígena Medicina 02:31 — Daniela's roots: born in Eagle Pass, Texas, connected to the Coahuiltecan people 04:08 — Growing up "siphoned" between two identities on the Texas-Mexico border 05:31 — Activism in San Antonio and fighting for Indigenous voices in the story of the Alamo 07:00 — Shayla on fragmentation, residential schools, and reclaiming pride as a younger generation 08:00 — Daniela's advice for reconnecting to elders and spirit without direct access 12:39 — What a curandera is and how the term is used in her Peruvian lineage 15:21 — What a dieta actually involves — from 8 days to years-long processes 20:40 — Why she began dieting: her mother's passing and the womb work that followed 24:22 — Receiving the Icaros — the "songs of the plants" — as a form of coding technology 28:06 — How she holds the responsibility of space-holding without burning out 30:34 — Physical discipline and nutrition as grounding practices for ceremony work 34:19 — Navigating cultural appropriation and how to vet a ceremony facilitator 37:22 — Lateral violence and protocols for creating safety within community containers 41:47 — Daniela's mentorship for stepping into confidence, power, and self-expression 44:09 — Defining matriarchy: her mother, her sisters, and mentor Miriam Hosny 50:08 — Where to find Daniela: her website, Instagram, and upcoming European tour Follow Daniela Riojas at Intikhana for details on her mentorship, retreats, and upcoming tours. @danielariojas https://www.intikhana.com/ https://linktr.ee/danielariojas Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Matriarch Movement Podcast — Season 6: Indigenous Voices of This Generation Multi-instrumentalist, producer, and singer-songwriter Aysanabee joins Shayla Oulette Stonechild on the Matriarch Movement podcast for a conversation that moves from a trailer with no electricity in rural Ontario to the Juno Awards stage. Aysanabee opens up about growing up between Sandy Lake First Nation and a series of small northern communities, teaching himself guitar in the forest as a kid, and working in remote mining camps from age 12 - including two near-death experiences with a bear, a wolf pack, and falling through frozen ice, a moment that pushed him to finally commit to music. He shares the story behind his Polaris-shortlisted, Juno Award–winning debut album - a project born from daily pandemic phone calls with his grandfather, a residential school survivor, that turned into recorded interviews and ultimately an album that helped his grandfather find peace before he passed. Aysanabee also talks about the $40 application fee that led to a record deal over a socially-distanced "Zoom dinner," playing 184 shows in a single year, the emotional weight of representing a national reckoning around residential schools, and his recent trip to Taiwan, where he discovered strikingly similar songs, dances, and reclamation journeys among Indigenous communities on the other side of the world. The conversation closes with his hopes for the future of Indigenous music including his dream of seeing a global Indigenous pop star and a preview of what's next as he heads into the mountains to write his follow-up to his latest release, Edge of the Earth. @_aysanabee_ https://www.aysanabee.com https://www.tiktok.com/@aysanabee Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Season 6: Indigenous Voices of This Generation In this episode of the Matriarch Movement Podcast's Indigenous Voices of This Generation season, host Shayla sits down with the daughter and successor of Talaysay Tours' founder, — an Indigenous entrepreneur, wellness advocate, and keynote speaker whose work bridges culture, sustainability, tourism, and economic reconciliation. Raised on the Sunshine Coast and rooted in both the Squamish and Shíshálh Nations, she shares how a family teaching - "we are the land, and the land is us" - shaped her path from a barefoot kid at Porpoise Bay Provincial Park to running walking tours across Vancouver, Squamish, and Whistler. The conversation traces the company's origin in 2001, growing up alongside her mother's entrepreneurial journey, the loss and revival of cultural knowledge after the Potlatch Ban and residential schools, and the little-known story of the Great Fire that shaped early Vancouver. She also opens up about building an Indigenous apparel line and skincare brand as extensions of cultural reclamation, what it means to mentor the next generation, and how she defines matriarchy in her own life and community. A conversation about land stewardship, intergenerational knowledge, and building Indigenous-led businesses that reflect who Indigenous people truly are. (00:00) Territorial acknowledgment and Season intro: Indigenous Voices of This Generation(01:06) Guest introduction with Talaysay Campo(02:12) Guest opens in language, shares ancestral village and territory(03:06) The guiding phrase: "We are the land, and the land is us"(05:04) How Talaysay Tours began in 2001 on the Sunshine Coast, growing up alongside the business(07:49) Childhood at Porpoise Bay Provincial Park; learning "sales" before she could spell(09:50) Going to business school at UBC, then joining the company full-time(12:35) The emotional and practical roots of starting a tour company as an Indigenous woman(14:03) Building community for cultural land ambassadors reconnecting with their nations (52+ guides hired since 2001)(17:30) On hierarchy vs. potlatch values in business partnerships(18:12) Company growth: from a family of 5 to 28 guides; new tour categories (Talking Trees, Spoken Treasures, Talking Totems, Salish Sea)(19:15) Healthcare-worker discounts and free tours as a form of reciprocity(21:01) What to expect on a Talking Trees tour; storytelling as the strongest teacher(24:42) The story of the Great Fire of Vancouver(31:15) The mission: helping guests feel grounded, redirected, and reconnected to the land(32:24) The bedtime story of Creator naming the trees — and why the Western Hemlock bows its head(34:29) Traditional medicinal uses of Western Hemlock and its role pre-contact(35:12) The Tem Cloud herring ceremony and its return after 120+ years(38:53) On Indigenous futurism: returning to original ways of caretaking and stewardship(41:08) Community touchpoints: Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week, Squamish Nation Powwow, Bill Reid Gallery(42:15) Advice for Indigenous entrepreneurs: asking for community help, values as a compass(44:36) Lessons from touring in New Zealand and witnessing land-first tourism models(47:50) 2026 goals: healthcare industry partnerships, wellness and movement offerings, getting cultural teachings into school textbooks(54:54) Defining matriarchy: presence, truth-telling, and service to community(57:07) Closing thanks and where to find tours, skincare, and apparel @talaysay_campo @nenaglacial https://www.talaysay.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices