Mountain Film Festival launches in the UK for the very first time

Debbie Gabriel

18 Oct 16

Mountains on Stage, the mountain film festival established in France during 2013, is launching in the UK for the very first time this year – bringing its exciting and varied mix of winter mountain films to cinemas across the country in cities including London, Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Four films, varying in length, explore winter in the mountains – from freeride skiing to dog sledding that include personal stories, spectacular scenery and adrenaline fuelled scenes from athletes and film makers at the very top of their game.

All four films are in English or contain subtitles where required and are set in different parts of the world including Japan, Alaska, Pakistan and The Alps.

Founder Cyril Solomon comments: “It’s really exciting to bring our film festival to the UK for the first time and introduce these movies to a new audience – once again, the talented and courageous protagonists will climb ever higher mountains, descend steeper slopes and face increasingly icy winters to entertain us and follow their dreams. We look forward to meeting you soon in Great Britain!”

The Program:

The Warmth of Winter, Director: Ben Sturgulewski, Length: 6 minutes

The quality of Japanese powder is legendary amongst skiers, and it has the reputation of being the world’s best snow. Stephan Drake, Piers Salomon and Santiago Guzman got a taste of it last season, after a massive storm hit the island of Hokkaido. When the sun finally came back, the light and the snow sculptures gave the place a mystical feel. Add Sylvan Esso’s mesmerizing music on top of that and you get the perfect film to get in the mood for winter.

Link Sar West, Director: Renan Ozturk, Length: 30 minutes

Combine British perseverance with a wild virgin summit in Pakistan, and you get a fascinating story. In July 2015, Jon Griffith and Andy Houseman went back to “Link Sar West” for the fourth time to try to climb to the top in alpine style. The footage they brought back is probably the best we have ever seen from a climb at this altitude.

La Liste, Director: Guido Perrini, Length: 40 minutes

Jeremy Heitz is one of the best freerider on the planet, with a second place finish at last year’s Freeride World Tour. Born and raised in the Swiss Alps, he always had an eye on the steep alpine faces surrounding his home. His goal for the past two years has been to bring his fast “freeride” style into steep skiing’s historical lines, like the north face of Ober Gabelhorn or the Gervasutti couloir of Mont-Blanc. Fasten your seatbelts, he is not easy to follow!

The Great Alone, Director: Greg Kohs, Length: 70 minutes

“Good films are hard to make, but great films are nearly impossible and often they sneak up on you without warning”. Those words are from Cory Richards, when he described why “The Great Alone” received the Grand Prize at the Banff Mountain Film Festival. This film captures the inspiring comeback story of Lance Mackey in the world’s hardest sleddog race: the Iditarod. Raised in the shadow of his father and struggling with various substance abuse, Lance finds his salvation in the great wide open of Alaska.