This captivating documentary focuses on the extraordinary bond between blind climber Jesse Dufton and his wife and climbing partner Molly Thompson
Alastair Lee’s adventure documentary is meant to be about an attempt by the ultra-high-achieving blind rock climber Jesse Dufton to scale the Old Man of Hoy, a formidable 450ft sea stack off Orkney. Born with a degenerative eye condition, Dufton can only distinguish between light and dark. Unusually for a non-sighted climber in a team of two, he is the lead, which means he goes first, taking the risks, placing the gear into cracks in the rock, clipping in the ropes. His climbing partner is his wife, Molly Thompson.
And here’s where the film really takes off, as a tender and moving portrait of a very English marriage. Dufton and Thompson are unsentimental plain-speakers: after the intoxicating thrill of a climb, don’t expect a high five,...
Alastair Lee’s adventure documentary is meant to be about an attempt by the ultra-high-achieving blind rock climber Jesse Dufton to scale the Old Man of Hoy, a formidable 450ft sea stack off Orkney. Born with a degenerative eye condition, Dufton can only distinguish between light and dark. Unusually for a non-sighted climber in a team of two, he is the lead, which means he goes first, taking the risks, placing the gear into cracks in the rock, clipping in the ropes. His climbing partner is his wife, Molly Thompson.
And here’s where the film really takes off, as a tender and moving portrait of a very English marriage. Dufton and Thompson are unsentimental plain-speakers: after the intoxicating thrill of a climb, don’t expect a high five,...
- 3/18/2020
- by Cath Clarke
- The Guardian - Film News
Kendal “Climbing Blind,” from Alastair Lee, took the Grand Prize at the 2019 Kendal Mountain Festival on Saturday. Detailing the ascent of a vertical rock pillar, the film revealed how a blind mountaineer led the climb, assisted only by a sight-partner a rope length below. The film had particular significance for a British audience, which had watched the climb in 1967 as an early outside broadcast undertaken by expert mountaineers. “Climbing Blind” showed not only how blindness was no impediment to the driven and the fearless, but also how it was the leading climber who required the greatest strength and faced the highest risks.
The Best Short Film prize went to “Fear of the Unknown,” from Daniel Brereton, and continued the theme of overcoming disability, using the outdoors as a part of the recovery process during the treatment of depression in an individual going through a program of therapy.
“Scenes From a Dry City,...
The Best Short Film prize went to “Fear of the Unknown,” from Daniel Brereton, and continued the theme of overcoming disability, using the outdoors as a part of the recovery process during the treatment of depression in an individual going through a program of therapy.
“Scenes From a Dry City,...
- 11/18/2019
- by George Bird
- Variety Film + TV
Benjamin Oberman, CEO of Film Festival Flix announces the lineup for its maiden voyage of the Online Mountain and Adventure Film Festival. Oberman, along with Joni Cooper, (former Director, Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival), James Edward Mills (Journalist / The Joy Trip Project), and Nasa Koski (Adventure Film School), will host the first annual Film Festival Flix Mountain & Adventure Film Festival over an unprecedented 28 days during the month of February.
The online festival, which will celebrate world class athletes, explorers, filmmakers, adventures and awe-inspiring locations from the most remote corners of the planet, boasts a series of interactive Athlete & Filmmaker Q&A’s, Expert Panels, and Twitter Chats; all online.
Seven competition categories will be awarded a total of $12,000 in cash prizes with additional recognition through sponsored awards. Winners will receive distribution on Film Festival Flix, affiliate networks and branded distribution channels.
In its mission to celebrate great mountain and adventure films and cultures from around the world, the festival will provide greater opportunity for films and audiences to connect through the internet. Oberman’s experience as an avid climber, kayaker, skier, and hang-glide pilot, attracted him to the adventure genre of film. With the success of his distribution company, Film Festival Flix, he is able to provide a landscape to combine both worlds. “Mountain and adventure films embody the Film Festival Flix ‘Think Independently’ mantra,” says Oberman. “They smash traditional molds and push common boundaries revealing living life on one’s own terms, and capturing moments few of us will ever experience.”
Watch and interact online with filmmakers and journey to the most remote locations on planet Earth ... all on your Smart TV, computer or mobile device. All prizes are determined completely by audience vote. Winners will be announced March 10, 2015 and presented theatrically in select Us cities.
Film Festival Flix offers the film-loving community quality movies from around the world through programming of international film festival gems, online film festivals, theatrical openings and a monthly theatrical premiere series.
Film Lineup
(Note: some films may be in competition in multiple categories)
Feature
An American Ascent (Director, Andrew Adkins & George Potter)
The Asgard Project (Director, Alastair Lee)
Damnation (Director, Ben Knight)
Grit Flick (Director, Alastair Lee)
The Holy Land of Tyrol (Director, Philipp J Pamer)
Into the Mind (Director, Eric Crosland & Dave Mossop)
Psyche (Director, Alastair Lee)
Walking the Camino: Six Ways to Santiago (Director, Lydia Smith)
Short
14.c (Director, George Knowles)
35 (Director, Nasa Koski)
The American Prairie Reserve (Director, Erik Goldstein)
Brave Little Toaster (Director, Andrew Beam)
Boy (Director, Alastair Lee)
Delta Dawn (Director, Pete McBride)
Education (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Force (Director, Fitz Cahall & Aiden Haley)
Fuse (Director, Dave Whortley)
The Gimp Monkeys (Director, Fitz Cahall & Mikey Schaefer)
In Search of Grande (Director, Adam Feuerman)
iPaddle (Director, Alastair Lee)
Joy of Air (Director, Bryan Smith)
Legacy of Intent: Protecting the Arctic Refuge (Director, Micah Baird)
Love in the Tetons (Director, Amy Marquis)
Prevail (Director, Kevin Ziechmann)
Project Mina (Director, Jen Randall)
Silence (Director, Austin Siadak)
Strong (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Sport (Non-Climbing)
Brave Little Toaster (Director, Andrew Beam)
All My Own Stunts (Director, Alastair Lee)
iPaddle (Director, Alastair Lee)
Wainwright Record Attempt (Director, Alastair Lee)
Fuse (Director, Alastair Lee)
Joy of Air (Director, Bryan Smith)
Silence (Director, Austin Siadak)
Strong (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Climbing (Rock, Ice, Mountaineering, Alpine)
14.c (Director, George Knowles)
35 (Director, Nasa Koski)
An American Ascent (Director, Andrew Adkins & George Potter)
The Asgard Proejct (Director, Alastair Lee)
The Disciples of Gill (Director, Pat Ament)
The Gimp Monkeys (Director, Fitz Cahall & Mikey Schaefer)
Grit Flick (Director, Alastair Lee)
John Gill Across Time (Director, Pat Ament)
Moonflower (Director, Alastair Lee)
Moving Over Stone: 25th Anniversary (Director, Doug Robinson)
On Sight (Director, Alastair Lee)
Prevail (Director, Kevin Ziechmann)
Project Mina (Director, Jen Randall)
The Prophet (Psyche (Director, Alastair Lee)
Set in Stone (Director, Alastair Lee & David Halsted)
Stone Free (Director, Alastair Lee)
Strong (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Sufferfest 2 (Director, Cedar Wright)
Environment
Damnation (Director, Ben Knight)
The American Prairie Reserve (Director, Erik Goldstein)
Notes on Ice (Director, Mark Whatmore)
Legacy of Intent: Protecting the Arctic Refuge (Director, Micah Baird)
Adventure
Autana (Director, Alastair Lee)
Delta Dawn (Director, Pete McBride)
Drawn (Director, Jeremy Collins)
Education (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Go Wild: Outside Las Vegas (Director, Doug Robinson)
In Search of Grande (Director, Adam Feuerman)
Into the Mind (Director, Eric Crosland & Dave Mossop)
North of the Sun (Director, Inge Wegge & Jorn Ranum)
Road From Karakol (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Walking the Camino: Six Ways to Santiago (Director, Lydia Smith)...
The online festival, which will celebrate world class athletes, explorers, filmmakers, adventures and awe-inspiring locations from the most remote corners of the planet, boasts a series of interactive Athlete & Filmmaker Q&A’s, Expert Panels, and Twitter Chats; all online.
Seven competition categories will be awarded a total of $12,000 in cash prizes with additional recognition through sponsored awards. Winners will receive distribution on Film Festival Flix, affiliate networks and branded distribution channels.
In its mission to celebrate great mountain and adventure films and cultures from around the world, the festival will provide greater opportunity for films and audiences to connect through the internet. Oberman’s experience as an avid climber, kayaker, skier, and hang-glide pilot, attracted him to the adventure genre of film. With the success of his distribution company, Film Festival Flix, he is able to provide a landscape to combine both worlds. “Mountain and adventure films embody the Film Festival Flix ‘Think Independently’ mantra,” says Oberman. “They smash traditional molds and push common boundaries revealing living life on one’s own terms, and capturing moments few of us will ever experience.”
Watch and interact online with filmmakers and journey to the most remote locations on planet Earth ... all on your Smart TV, computer or mobile device. All prizes are determined completely by audience vote. Winners will be announced March 10, 2015 and presented theatrically in select Us cities.
Film Festival Flix offers the film-loving community quality movies from around the world through programming of international film festival gems, online film festivals, theatrical openings and a monthly theatrical premiere series.
Film Lineup
(Note: some films may be in competition in multiple categories)
Feature
An American Ascent (Director, Andrew Adkins & George Potter)
The Asgard Project (Director, Alastair Lee)
Damnation (Director, Ben Knight)
Grit Flick (Director, Alastair Lee)
The Holy Land of Tyrol (Director, Philipp J Pamer)
Into the Mind (Director, Eric Crosland & Dave Mossop)
Psyche (Director, Alastair Lee)
Walking the Camino: Six Ways to Santiago (Director, Lydia Smith)
Short
14.c (Director, George Knowles)
35 (Director, Nasa Koski)
The American Prairie Reserve (Director, Erik Goldstein)
Brave Little Toaster (Director, Andrew Beam)
Boy (Director, Alastair Lee)
Delta Dawn (Director, Pete McBride)
Education (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Force (Director, Fitz Cahall & Aiden Haley)
Fuse (Director, Dave Whortley)
The Gimp Monkeys (Director, Fitz Cahall & Mikey Schaefer)
In Search of Grande (Director, Adam Feuerman)
iPaddle (Director, Alastair Lee)
Joy of Air (Director, Bryan Smith)
Legacy of Intent: Protecting the Arctic Refuge (Director, Micah Baird)
Love in the Tetons (Director, Amy Marquis)
Prevail (Director, Kevin Ziechmann)
Project Mina (Director, Jen Randall)
Silence (Director, Austin Siadak)
Strong (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Sport (Non-Climbing)
Brave Little Toaster (Director, Andrew Beam)
All My Own Stunts (Director, Alastair Lee)
iPaddle (Director, Alastair Lee)
Wainwright Record Attempt (Director, Alastair Lee)
Fuse (Director, Alastair Lee)
Joy of Air (Director, Bryan Smith)
Silence (Director, Austin Siadak)
Strong (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Climbing (Rock, Ice, Mountaineering, Alpine)
14.c (Director, George Knowles)
35 (Director, Nasa Koski)
An American Ascent (Director, Andrew Adkins & George Potter)
The Asgard Proejct (Director, Alastair Lee)
The Disciples of Gill (Director, Pat Ament)
The Gimp Monkeys (Director, Fitz Cahall & Mikey Schaefer)
Grit Flick (Director, Alastair Lee)
John Gill Across Time (Director, Pat Ament)
Moonflower (Director, Alastair Lee)
Moving Over Stone: 25th Anniversary (Director, Doug Robinson)
On Sight (Director, Alastair Lee)
Prevail (Director, Kevin Ziechmann)
Project Mina (Director, Jen Randall)
The Prophet (Psyche (Director, Alastair Lee)
Set in Stone (Director, Alastair Lee & David Halsted)
Stone Free (Director, Alastair Lee)
Strong (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Sufferfest 2 (Director, Cedar Wright)
Environment
Damnation (Director, Ben Knight)
The American Prairie Reserve (Director, Erik Goldstein)
Notes on Ice (Director, Mark Whatmore)
Legacy of Intent: Protecting the Arctic Refuge (Director, Micah Baird)
Adventure
Autana (Director, Alastair Lee)
Delta Dawn (Director, Pete McBride)
Drawn (Director, Jeremy Collins)
Education (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Go Wild: Outside Las Vegas (Director, Doug Robinson)
In Search of Grande (Director, Adam Feuerman)
Into the Mind (Director, Eric Crosland & Dave Mossop)
North of the Sun (Director, Inge Wegge & Jorn Ranum)
Road From Karakol (Director, Fitz Cahall)
Walking the Camino: Six Ways to Santiago (Director, Lydia Smith)...
- 1/29/2015
- by Erin Grover
- Sydney's Buzz
This weekend's Kendal Mountain festival is one of the highlights of the year for outdoor adventure sports lovers, and showcases films from enthusiasts of all disciplines, from ice-climbing to extreme skiing. Watch highlights from the event below
• Click here to see an exclusive extract from the film Autana
This weekend the Kendal Mountain festival (15-18 November) will draw thousands of outdoor adventurers, from elite athletes to every-day enthusiasts, to the Lake District for the biggest event of its kind in the world.
Alongside talks by medal-winning Olympic triathletes the Brownlee brothers, practical workshops and free beer, at the heart of the event is the Mountain film festival, which showcases 60 films, including several premieres.
The selection includes some of the year's most anticipated and feted extreme sports movies. Catch the world premiere of Wide Boyz, a documentary following Sheffield climbers Tom Randall and Pete Whittaker's ascent of one of the widest,...
• Click here to see an exclusive extract from the film Autana
This weekend the Kendal Mountain festival (15-18 November) will draw thousands of outdoor adventurers, from elite athletes to every-day enthusiasts, to the Lake District for the biggest event of its kind in the world.
Alongside talks by medal-winning Olympic triathletes the Brownlee brothers, practical workshops and free beer, at the heart of the event is the Mountain film festival, which showcases 60 films, including several premieres.
The selection includes some of the year's most anticipated and feted extreme sports movies. Catch the world premiere of Wide Boyz, a documentary following Sheffield climbers Tom Randall and Pete Whittaker's ascent of one of the widest,...
- 11/13/2012
- by Georgia Brown
- The Guardian - Film News
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