A filmed record of Captain J.E. Bernier’s sixth expedition to the Arctic, apparently his 1914/1915 private expedition, using his own ship "Guide," to Albert Harbour, near Pond Inlet, Baffin Island, in the Northwest Territories (now Nunavut). The film begins with the following intertitle: "Captain J.E. Bernier Presents". This introduces the film's title "The Land of the Midnight Sun". This is followed by footage of a close-up of Bernier, standing in a studio with painted landscape scenery in the background. He doffs his hat to the camera and leaves. Next is the intertitle "Native life and scenery, as seen in his sixth trip to the north land". This intertitle is immediately followed by the intertitle "Leaving Quebec". Footage shows: pan shot of the St. Lawrence River at Quebec City, ships on the water and buildings along the shoreline, including the Chateau Frontenac; intertitle "Montmorency Falls and Cog Railway", followed by footage of a tram car moving down the rail on a steep incline and some views of Montmorency Falls; intertitle "Levis, opposite Quebec", followed by a long shot of the river, ships docked, shoreline and buildings in the distance; intertitle "Loose ice off the Greenland coast", followed by shots of ice sheets, open water and an iceberg; intertitle "S.S. Guide amid ice in Melville Bay", showing a longshot of Captain Bernier's ship with a crew member in the rigging; S.S. Guide shown from a different angle; intertitle "S.S. Guide beset in heavy ice, and crew at exercise", followed by a longshot of the ship stuck in the ice, with crew members in the foreground, playing a game in which they kick an object around and then clown around for the camera by holding a pole which other men try to climb; crew members hold a pole horizontally while a man hangs down from it by his knees and moves forward as if walking on his hands; other men swing from the horizontal pole; another longshot of the ship as a man walks in front; intertitle "S.S. Guide arrives at Albert Harbor, showing condition of ice in summer", followed by dark footage of small boats moving among ice floes and being rowed to shore (footage gets lighter and easier to see as the shot progresses); intertitle "Boats handling cargo",, followed by shots of boats on rocky shore; crates and boxes on shore; men moving cargo; men rowing boats from shore; intertitle "Esquimau Kayak on hunting trip", showing Inuit kayaks moving in the open water among ice sheets; intertitle "Hauling boats ashore for safety during winter", followed by shots of people on shore, including people in Inuit clothing, near a small cabin and a tent; closer shot of men moving boats onto land as sled dogs walk around in the vicinity; dogs lying down; long lines of Inuit towing boats onto shore as other men pull the sides of the boats; several shots (some are soft focus) of men hauling the boats up onto hilly land; some shots of a motionless S.S. Guide in the water, surrounded by ice; longshot of man walking over to the ship and climbing up the side; men driving sleds; intertitle "Seal hunting", followed by footage of kayak on water, approaching the shore; kayak being paddled to shore and man lifting the kayak out of the water and onto the shore; men with sled dogs and sled on shore; men stacking animal skins (some image deterioration at this point); pan shot over ice and open water; two people on a hill; man with a seal; dogs in background; two men with seal; man skinning seal and cutting it up; man spreads seal meat on snow and sled dogs move in to eat it; dogs and Inuit in camp with small building in background; Inuit women and children; and Inuk. This is the end of the first reel. Part two begins with the intertitle "Esquimau [sic] women at work". Footage shows Inuit in a camp, with tent in the background and sled dogs walking about; Inuit woman and child; Inuit women softening leather by chewing it; tent made of animal hides; animal hides being dried; Inuit woman and child; more shots of an Inuit woman chewing an animal hide; Inuit child sits down beside her; child gestures to the woman; Inuk walks to them and hands the woman a pipe; woman smokes pipe and sews hide; intertitle "A deer hunting expedition", followed by intertitle "Dogs are the horses of the Artic [sic - the intertitle misspells Arctic as Artic] , followed by shots of Inuit, a stony outcrop in background, Inuit with sled dogs; a man putting an animal pelt on the back of a sled dog; dogs running around; intertitle "Dogs crossing Cameo brook", followed by footage of sled dogs walking across a stream; more footage of dogs and people; intertitle "Norwhale fishing [sic]", followed by longshots of something moving at the surface of the water, probably a narwhal; longshot of man standing on shore, probably trying to catch the narwhal; something (probably a narwhal just below the water's surface) thrashes about; a group of men on shore, looking out over the water; men and small boat on shore; men hauling a narwhal up onto the shore; dark footage of men with the norwhal (possibly cutting it up); intertitle "Another method of hunting seal", followed by a long shot of a man creeping slowly along the ice on his stomach, in imitation of a seal and the camera pans to an actual seal; the man creeps up on the seal, which is motionless, gets up, runs over to it and grabs it; intertitle "'The Midnight Sun', as seen from an elevation of 1800 feet at Albert Harbor", followed by a shot of a man who ties a cloth to a small stick stuck in the snow and waves his hat), pan to sun between mountain peaks; pan shot over a mountain range and then to shoreline; intertitle "Esquimaux [sic] at their meals", followed by footage of small groups of Inuit eating in front of tent as more people and dogs arrive; people mill about; intertitle "Women repairing Kayaks", followed by shots of Inuit women repairing boats; Inuit man in background; Inuit children watch them work; intertitle "an Esquimau [sic] woman's toilet is comprised of very little water", followed by a shot of an Inuit woman seated on the ground in front of a tent, with a small bowl in front of her; she washes her hands and then her forearms; an Inuit child comes along; the woman pins up her hair and washes her face and neck; another shot of a woman and child, showing the woman holding a larger bowl and the child washing itself and wiping its face with a cloth; footage of birds flying around with a cliff in the background; intertitle 'Native women at target practice", showing a group of Inuit women seated on a rocky beach, throwing small objects at a target; another person resets the target and they resume; children watch them; intertitle "Opening a nine foot coal vein and transporting product", followed by footage of three men using pick axes to chop at coal in the snow; a pile of ice or snow is in the foreground; man digging out the lumps of coal; Inuit pile the coal onto sleds and one man covers a pile with a pelt; men fastening the piles of coal to the sleds; sled dogs waiting nearby; dog sleds moving off; one sled stops and then moves off again. The third part starts with the intertitle "Meal at Salmon River", longshot of people seated in front of a small wooden building; intertitle "Salmon fishing" followed by footage of two men paddling a small boat while a third man stands at the stern holding a large net that is being dragged through the water; man gets out of boat and walks to shore; other men nearby; more shots of the boat; men in boat checking a net strung out along the water; men hauling net, helped by men in boat; building on shore; men standing around a barrel; something being carried into a building; pan shot of water, mountain and chunks of ice in water; long pan of horizon, possibly a 360 degree panning shot; small building with another building off in the distance. ~The film continues with this intertitle “Native (Inuit) method of salmon”, followed by footage of Inuit standing and crouching on ice beside water, with spears, watching for fish; man stands on small chunk of ice; long shot of two men in boat; two men, each holding a fish; intertitle “Native seal hunting”, followed by Inuk on dog sled; man with stick or spear; dog sleds in dog sleds in background (no seals visible); intertitle: "Preparing for a bear hunt further north", followed by footage of a group of people who appear to be packing dog sleds; still shot of a bear; another shot of what appears to be a stuffed bear; intertitle "Preparing skins and building kaack [sic - the intertitle misspells kayak]; followed by footage of animal skin stretched out and pegged to ground to dry; Inuit making kayak; intertitle which reads "Button Point on Bylot Island with Captain Bernier's house. Taken at midnight", followed by footage of a house in daylight, with pan shot of mountains in background and over to shoreline; intertitle "Counting skins and loading boats", showing men with a pile of rolled up animal pelts; loading pelts on small boats on shore; more scenes on boat; men rowing from shore, towing another boat that carries pelts; men unfurling sail on the first boat and they sail off; intertitle "Native Dances Before Parting", showing Inuit men, women and children dancing in front of a building as others look on, including a man wearing a cap (this may be Bernier); man plays accordion as people dance; intertitle "Heavy sea upon entering Belle Isle Strait" followed by intertitle "Sea breaking on northern shore", followed by close-up of water, filmed from deck of ship, with hilly terrain in background. Intertitle 'Sending our first mail at Harrington, Labrador", followed by long shot of three ships on the water; and shot of an Inuit making a face at the camera. The film ends with the word "Finis". <82mn 50s>
