Higher Ground
2007 · 84m · Adventure · Documentary
The cinematography is breathtaking but the unifying theme is lifestyle, the common bond that unites climbers around the globe. It's a year in the life. What motivates these athletes to court danger? Higher Ground celebrates mountain culture through the eyes of world-class climbers. The film focuses on these climbers' drive to explore, their passion for the mountains and the climbing lifestyle. From big wall first ascents in Zion, Utah and winter alpine ascents in the Canadian Rockies to big wall ski descents in coastal British Columbia, Higher Ground spotlights some of the continent's most inaccessible terrain and the people who thrive there. A lens into their boundary-breaking passion illustrates what mountain culture is: an obsession. Featuring: Mike Anderson, John Chilton, Audrey Gariepy, Phil Gruber, Shawn Huisman, Sean Isaac, Lisa Korthals, Guy Lacelle, Rob Owens, Ines Papert, Rob Pizem, Andrew Querner, Scott Semple, and Josh Wharton.
More Like This
Pacific Lines
2019
A story of cultural identity and rock climbing exploration as we follow one of Australia’s top rock climbers on an adventure to a remote and rugged island in the South Pacific.
More info →
Venezuela Jungle Jam
2012 · ★ 10
The latest film from the Belgian climbing team, following Asgard Jamming and Vertical Sailing Greenland, Venezuela Jungle Jam features Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll, Nico Favresse, Stephane Hanssens and Jean-Louis Wertz as they attempt a new free climb on the overhanging 500m wall of Amuri Tepul in the Venezuelan Jungle.
More info →
Vertical Sailing Greenland
2011 · ★ 8
A "team of savages," as their boat captain Bob Shepton calls them, comprised of Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll, Olivier Favresse, Nicolas Favresse, and Ben Ditto, set off for Greenland to attempt a first big wall climb. Arriving in Asia by plane, they prepare the sailboat for two months of self-sufficiency. Accompanied by whales, seagulls, and icebergs, they train on various rock faces before beginning their ascent of the seemingly impossible wall. It takes them 11 days to complete the climb, braving bad weather, the rock itself, the wilderness, and three different bivouac sites—all accompanied by music, of course! The return journey is not without its challenges, as they must avoid a cyclone and cross the Atlantic to reach Oben in Scotland.
More info →
China Jam
2014 · ★ 10
In their infinite quest for virgin big walls, adventurers Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll, Nicolas Favresse, Stephane Hanssens and Evrard Wendenbaum, head in September 2013 to a remote valley in the westernmost region of China. There, they found a fantastic 1200m vertical pillar, culminating at 5842m. They spent 14 days on the wall facing snow storms and harsh conditions to finally achieve this amazing ascent with some frost bites but never forgetting to have a lot of fun and to play unreal musical sessions.
More info →
North Face
2008 · ★ 7.2
North Face tells the story of two German climbers Toni Kurz and Andreas Hinterstoisser and their attempt to scale the deadly North Face of the Eiger.
More info →
King Lines
2007 · ★ 6.9
King Lines follows Chris Sharma on his search for the planet's greatest climbs. From South American fantasy boulders to the sweeping limestone walls of Europe, Sharma finds and climbs the hardest, most spectacular routes. Off the coast of Mallorca he discovers his most outrageous project yet, a 70 foot arch rising from the Mediterranean Sea...
More info →
Touching the Void
2003 · ★ 7.6
The true story of Joe Simpson and Simon Yates' disastrous and nearly-fatal mountain climb of 6,344m Siula Grande in the Cordillera Huayhuash in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.
More info →
Masterclass Part 2: Skills and Tactics for Sport and Trad
2005 · ★ 10
Are you tired of burning out on steep routes and unsure whether it’s due to lack of strength or poor technique? Do you still feel nervous about pushing above bolts or trusting your feet on slabs? If you’re fed-up with making the same old mistakes then why not settle the score using this two-part instructional video series, hosted by Britain’s leading climbing coach Neil Gresham. Whether you climb F5 or F7c, these films are packed with tips to help you improve every aspect of your climbing performance. Part 1 shows you how to develop your technique and how to train more productively and Part 2 shows you how to put it all together and get the most from yourself on the cliffs. There are right and wrong examples to help you identify your weaknesses and case studies from some of Britain’s best climbers. Those dream routes may be closer than you think and watching these films might be all you need to turn them into a reality.
More info →
Opera Vertical
1984 · ★ 10
Vertical Opera is a documentary film directed by Jean-Paul Janssen, with climbers Patrick Edlinger and Jean-Paul Lemercier in the Gorges du Verdon. The film opens with a training sequence of Patrick Edlinger then he links the routes with Jean-Paul Lemercier "L'Ange en décongelation" (7a), in which he falls voluntarily to demonstrate the usefulness of the rope, then "Le Septième Saut" (7b+). Finally, the final scene, an anthology, consists of a close-up of Edlinger who climbs free solo and barefoot the route "Débiloff", still in the Verdon, above hundreds of meters of void, all to lyrical music. It is "Wie Furchtsam Wankten Meine Schritte", the aria for alto voice from Johann Sebastian Bach's cantata BWV 33, music not unrelated to the subject of the documentary: "How faltering and fearful my steps were".
More info →