Telluride’s Mountainfilm Festival returns this Memorial Day Weekend, May 25th-28th.
Every year for 40 years, Mountainfilm floods Telluride with filmmakers, activists, and outdoor-enthusiasts alike. And each year, new films explore how the environment molds individuals and how our collective values impress upon the environment. The 2018 festival theme is Migration. Many of the films and forums will take a critical look at the unique stories of political, cultural, and climate refugees. With so many dramatic narratives and amusing shorts to choose from, we handpicked a few of the Mountainfilms we’re eager to see, especially as skiers. Check out the complete 2018 lineup for more.
2.5 Million
In January 2016, Aaron Rice endeavored to ski 2.5 million vertical feet in one year. And that’s without help from rope tows or ski cats–an entirely human-powered expedition. (Vertically speaking, 2.5 million feet is the same as summiting Mount Everest from its basecamp more than 200 times.) As he trekked through injuries and brutal storms in Colorado and Argentina, Rice proved that determination is a greater force than exhaustion. Watch the full movie below.
Return to Mount Kennedy
In March 1965, Bobby Kennedy became the first person to summit Mount Kennedy in Canada’s Yukon Territory. Jim Whittaker, the first American mountaineer to summit Mt. Everest, traveled with him. Now fifty years later, Bobby’s son and Jim’s sons honor the legacies of their fathers as they attempt the same summit, 13,944 feet up.
Mountain
With masterful cinematography, epic scores, and an atmosphere of wonder, Jennifer Peedom’s Mountain captures the sense of awe that underlies Mountainfilm. Narrator Willem Defoe meditates on the ineffable beauty and unfaltering nobility of mountains, and our urge to conquer them.
Follow Through
It seems counter-intuitive to find the backcountry on social media: places defined by their remoteness become public spectacle. Follow Through touches on this theme as Utah skier Caroline Gleich aspires to ski all 90 routes of the Chuting Gallery in the Wasatch Range– but not without scathing criticisms from online tormentors.
Best of Ski Edits
If you’re thing is ski edits with sick lines, then check out Numinous. Watch pro skiers Pep Fujas, Kye Peterson, and Tatum Monod float through pillowy pow and drop devilish cliffs. Still, our favorite ski footage has to be 10-Year-Old Kai Jones’ Mind Blowing Season Edit. And, the video was compiled by Kai’s biggest fan and father, Todd Jones. You can watch the full short below.
Mountainfilm tours throughout the year, including shows in Aspen and Boulder. If you can’t make it to Telluride, then check out the full Mountainfilm tour schedule for full sends at a theater near you.
