ONE of the most consistently exciting film events around, the Banff Mountain Film Festival tour, returns with a series of new action-packed films, continuing at the Regent Centre in Christchurch on 10th April. The Festival returns to the south and west in September.
From mountain biking across America to terrifying freestyle mountain climbing or skiing in Kyrgyzstan and more, the 2024 Banff Mountain red and blue programmes feature new collections of the world’s best adventure films, extreme journeys, intrepid characters and stunning landscapes, to thrill audiences in the comfort of a cinema seat.
“Get ready for an inspirational night of adventure from the wildest corners of the planet!” says tour director Nell Teasdale. “With intrepid athletes, spectacular cinematography and a big dose of adrenaline, the Banff Mountain Film Festival stars the best new films from the world’s top adventure filmmakers.”
The tour films are chosen from hundreds of entries into the Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival, which is held every November in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. Now in its 15th year, the UK and Ireland tour will visit over 50 locations in spring and autumn 2024.
Highlights include:
Chronoception – an expedition along the ancient Silk Road into one of the least explored regions of Asia: the Tien Shan mountains, on the Kyrgyzstan-China border. Three skiers and snowboarders follow in the footsteps of Kyrgyzstan’s nomadic people, to find themselves thrown into a world where time and space appear to stand still. Facing wild mountain landscapes, wild weather patterns and wild animals, the trio battle hostile conditions to ski stunning lines down truly immaculate peaks.
Cross Countries – French mountain biking legend Kilian Bron spends his time travelling the world looking for thrilling routes to ride, and this time he’s crossing North America on some of the continent’s most iconic trails, from urban bike life in New York City, to red rock formations in Moab, to dense Canadian forests.
Going Greenland – How do we follow our dreams while living in a way that is more in harmony with our environment? Athletes Rachael Burks and Jessica Baker attempt to find out, by combining a renewable energy sailboat with an arctic ski expedition in Greenland. The result is an inspiring and formidable voyage, with compromise and progress going hand in hand on an experimental journey through the wild landscapes and seascapes of Western Greenland.
Pictured are stills from (Red programme) Cross Countries, photograph by JB Liautard; (Blue programme) Going Greenland, photograph by Erich Roepke; (Blue) Subterranean, photograph by Fix De Ruydts; (Red) Chronoception, photograph by Jeremy Bernard; (Red) Soundscape.