Finding Ice Cove in real life: Pulling the curtains from North of North filming locations

North of North, Netflix's beloved Canadian sitcom, has returned with Season 2 and fans' fascination with Ice Cove, Siaja Kudlak's (Anna Lambe) fictional Arctic town, continues to grow. Created by Inuit filmmakers Stacey Aglok MacDonald and Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, the sitcom makes a conscious effort to celebrate Inuit identity and contemporary community life through Siaja, a young Inuk mother trying to rebuild her life.

Ice Cove might be fictional, but the breathtaking Arctic backdrop has a very real address. According to Netflix Tudum, North of North was primarily filmed in Iqaluit, the most populous city of the Arctic Canadian territory of Nunavut. The sitcom achieved a significant milestone by becoming the first series of its size to film in the Arctic.

As revealed by the creators in an interview with Netflix Tudum, Ice Cove is fictional by design, allowing them to bring together different aspects of Inuit experiences rather than represent just one community. With residents involved in the production and an Inuit-led cast and creative team, the sitcom offers a refreshing portrayal of Arctic life that puts its people and culture at the centre of the story.

Here are some filming locations from the sitcom.

North of North filming locations

According to a location guide shared by Nunatsiaq News, Iqaluit’s local paper, North of North transformed many iconic places in Iqaluit to match real-life places in Ice Cove. Since Season 2 returns to Iqaluit, fans can expect to see many familiar locations in the latest installment.

Apex Beach is a standout outdoor location in the series, which appears as itself. The historic Hudson Bay trading post and the red boat on site make it an instantly recognizable location for native people of Iqaluit. Secondly, the Ice Cove community centre is an important part of Siaja's attempt to rebuild her life. As she takes up a job at the community centre, it becomes an important part of the narrative. The interior scenes for the community centre were shot at Iqaluit’s Unikkaarvik Visitor Centre, which also houses the city's public library.

Interestingly, the Discovery Hotel seen in North of North Season 1 actually exists in real life. The hotel, where Alistair and Kuuk shared a room, also served as an entrance to the Saturday Bar and Grill, which was actually shot at Pat's Lounge, a community event space located inside the Royal Canadian Legion.

Lastly, the end of a cul-de-sac in Iqaluit’s Tundra Valley neighborhood was transformed into Siaja and Ting’s house in Season 1.

North of North Season 2 returns to its roots with some changes

While North of North Season 2 returns to many iconic locations from Season 1, the crew moved many interior sets, including Neevee's house, the community centre, Alistair's cabin, and the sauna, to a soundstage in Toronto.

Apex, a small community about 3 miles southeast of downtown Iqaluit, remained a major filming location for the latest season. As reported by Nunatsiaq News, the Simonie Michael Lane in Apex was transformed into Neevee’s Survival Shop and two roads were even closed for filming in March. Additionally, the crew contacted locals on Facebook and other social media platforms to hire them as extras.

As Siaja and Neevee's stories take a different turn in North of North Season 2, the changes in filming locations reflect that transition on screen. As Neevee works to expand her business and reconnects with Alistair, her survival shop becomes an important part of the narrative, introducing a new location into the fold. Similarly, Siaja's life takes a turn as she breaks out of her boss Helen's regime by taking on bigger community projects and sets out to search for her long-lost sister in the city.

As North of North Season 2 expands Siaja's world, the expansion of the filming locations to Toronto aids in translating that transition, completing Siaja's professional and personal journey as the season comes to a close.

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Both seasons of the sitcom are streaming on Netflix.

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