Banff Mountain Film Festival 2010

Last night was the 2010 Banff Mountain Film Festival in Ann Arbor.  Ben and I were able to get in the first paddle of the spring up the Huron River and catch a nice dinner outdoors before the film.  It was a great spring day.

Another outstanding night of inspiring, thought provoking stories captured on film.  There are just so many ways to lead an inspired life.

First Ascent: Alone on the Wall

USA, 2009, 24 minutes

Directed and produced by Peter Mortimer and Nick Rosen
After gaining international climbing renown for his landmark free-solo of Moonlight Buttress (V, 5 .12+, 9 pitches) in Zion National Park, Utah, in April 2008, 24-year-old Alex Honnold moves on to his next big challenge: the first free-solo of the Regular Northwest Face (VI, 5 .12a, 23 pitches) on Yosemite’s Half Dome.


Kranked — Revolve
Canada, 2009, 11 minutes
Directed and produced by Bjørn Enga
People’s Choice Award for Radical Reels, sponsored by Mountain Culture at The Banff Centre
The coolest human-powered adrenaline tool ever invented — the mountain bike? Revolve blasts in cinematic glory from the French Alps to the lush coast of B.C., incorporating dirt jump, trail, freeride, slopestyle and downhill.


MedeoZ
France, 2008, 6 minutes
Directed and produced by Guillaume Broust
Filmed in the Mont Blanc range, this short features six different mountain sports: climbing, skiing, snowboarding, speed riding, paragliding and BASE jumping. A photographer wants to take one shot showing all the sports, instead of taking separate photos of each sport. It takes a lot of work!


Mont-Blanc Speed Flying
Best Short Mountain Film, sponsored by Mountain Hardwear
France, 2008, 10 minutes
Directed and produced by Didier Lafond
Six speed riders fly from the upper slopes of Mont Blanc down to Chamonix in one continuous 10-minute shot, filmed in Cineflex.


Project Megawoosh
Special Jury Mention
Germany, 2009, 4 minutes
Directed by Minh Duong
Produced by Nikolas Hannack
Bruno Kammell, a German engineer, works to perfect the world’s tallest human water slide.


Rowing the Atlantic
USA, 2009, 26 minutes
Directed and produced by JB Benna
A few years ago, Roz Savage gave up what for many would be an ideal life (husband, great job, big house), picked up a few pairs of rowing oars and a boat to go with them and set off across the Atlantic Ocean — alone — in a rowboat.


Signatures: Canvas of Snow
USA, 2009, 16 minutes
Directed by Nick Waggoner
Produced by Ben Sturgulewski
In Japan there is a cultural connection to the different signatures of our terrestrial home — a sense that the rhythm of fall, winter, spring and summer influences the rhythm of the person, their energy, their riding style and the lines they choose. This special edit features skiers, snowboarders, a photographer and a noboarder who are each in tune with this connection to winter and the environment they ride in.


Take a Seat
Special Jury Mention
UK, 2009, 46 minutes
Directed by Ed Stobart, Dominic Gill
Produced by Lucy Wilcox
Dominic Gill’s mission is to cycle the 32,000 kilometres from the northern coast of Alaska to the southern tip of South America, on a tandem bike, picking up random strangers on the way. A gripping tale of two years and two continents, full of extraordinary characters and incidents.