Programme - Thursday 17. October 2024 - Day

A deeply personal and inspiring story about Danny Giovale, a passionate mountaineer who discovers a critical safety flaw in his equipment during an accident in the Dolomites. He then develops new types of Grödel crampons and learns a lot about himself in the process. Three decades later, he returns with the product he invented to complete the climb that almost cost his life.

Paraglider Guillaume has a big dream: a complete traverse of the Alps on foot and by glider. En route, he wants to climb in the Drei Zinnen (Tre Cime di Lavaredo) as well as scaling Mont Blanc, Matterhorn and Monte Viso. He can only do this with the help of his friends, who accompany him on his 870-mile journey. He flies solo, but he is never really alone. Together with his friends, Guillaume demonstrates that extraordinary challenges can only be mastered by a team.

100 Years ago, clever tourism marketers in Oberhof, Thuringia, didn’t stick too closely to the truth: They advertised Mount Schneekopf with the magic height of 1,000 meters (3,280 ft) – not quite correctly, but understandably. To turn the 978 meters into Thuringia’s only one-thousander, tourism politicians considered a mere few years ago to raise Mt Schneekopf up to 1,000 meters. Mt Schneekopf however needs none of that, as enough exciting stories abound about this mountain.

As the Director of the Red Taiga National Park in Mongolia, Tumursukh’s job is to protect natural spaces and wildlife. His effective subterfuge is to turn former poachers into gamekeepers. Tumursukh’s strategy seems to be working. But the gradual alignment of diverse ways of life, traditions and demands is endangered when a bear family invades a village.

A film about developing and ascending a completely new climbing route. In the Bavarian mountains, brothers Groggi (20) and Elias (18) discover an untouched wall – which presents a perfect line! After prepping it, Groggi sets out on a free solo ascent. But it is harder than expected. While it remains unclear if the boys have taken on too much, they ask themselves what this is really about. Spoiler: more than you think …

Fay Manners and Line van den Berg have conquered massive Alpine walls together. Now, the two travel to Ben Nevis, the Scottish home of mixed climbing. The goals are ambitious, and the winter climbing weather is dauntingly changeable, which puts the endurance of the all-female team to the test. The film pays tribute to Line van den Berg, who died in an accident after filming was completed.

Two mountaineers explore the jagged Giants of Montserrat near Barcelona with the aim of climbing across all peaks of this mountain range in a single push. Abseiling, bivouacking and a long phase of concentration are necessary to successfully execute this project on the sandstone formations high above Barcelona. After more than a year of preparation, they set out to climb each of Montserrat’s 107 peaks in one week.

Alpinist Caro North and skipper Marta Guemes discover a shared passion for great adventures. Together with an all-female team, they mean to sail from France through the rough Arctic Sea to Greenland in order to attempt the first ascent of a big wall there. With a pinch of humour, the film tells of patience, determination, trust, strong cohesion and extraordinary achievements.

The mountain beckons – and people flock to it. The Alps have been experiencing a tourism boom since the 1950s. The post-war era spurred wanderlust in people’s hearts. By now, they could afford modest vacations and longed for an experience. The Alpine region boasts nature immersion, relaxation and micro-doses of adventure – all without major language barriers. An irresistible mix of “home” and “far away”. Many families travelled to the Alps for the first time. They left behind everyday life, Mount Großglockner looming ahead. Back in the day, adventure came first, comfort last.

Barbara Passrugger’s cinematic work begins when she calls a radio station that made a public appeal: A TV show is interested in purely personal memories and does not expect them to become bestsellers. At that moment, a journey through memories begins, interviews with companions and the next generation follow as well as re-enactments of remembered scenes. Gradually, a picture emerges in which Barbara Passrugger’s alpine ambitions leave deep impressions.

Mount Boy was born with disabilities in his feet and hands. One of his legs is recovering after several surgeries, but doctors are unable to restore the second leg. A climbing programme changes his life. Today he is one of Iran’s foremost climbing and canyoning instructors.

In a small town in the Abruzzo mountains, a unique competition has been taking place for centuries: Every year, men in Pacentro run barefoot from a rocky shoulder over scree slopes into the valley and beyond, then back up into the village. Whoever reaches the church first wins the so-called Corsa degli Zingari. It is an ancient custom, the origin of which is unknown, and which reflects the indissoluble relationship between people and nature.

The old Kurdish carpenter Hussein Mahmood tirelessly collects and bends wood to make prosthetic legs for victims of landmine explosions. In his remote Iranian mountain region, under the watchful eyes of squirrels, he trudges through the snow, looking for the best wood for prostheses. In an area littered with landmines, his meticulous work brings help to the victims of the insidious weapons of war. Hussein’s work aligns with nature and is an inspiring example of care and connection.

Swiss mountain guide Thomas Ulrich is known as an adventurer, expedition traveller, mountaineer and paraglider. But his heart also beats for hunting, because it makes him feel free and at one with nature. His experiences in the mountains and in the air help Thomas to develop a wide range of skills. He needs these to hunt at the foot of Mount Jungfrau in the Bernese Oberland – an area that is not suitable for just any hunter.

21 September 2024 marked the 100th anniversary of Hermann Buhl’s birth. Honouring this occasion, the film paints a portrait of the exceptional Tyrolean mountaineer that goes beyond his mountaineering achievements. Hermann Buhl was not only a rock climber, alpinist and ascendant of eight-thousanders, but also the father of three daughters. The surviving sisters Kriemhild and Silvia as well as Simon Messner and Martin Sieberer – who repeat an early first ascent of Buhl’s – are looking for answers to the question: What is it like to live with a father who is famous for extremes and also extremely absent?

Two young mountain guides, Benjamin Védrines and Nicolas Jean, tackle their first eight-thousander: Broad Peak in the Karakoram. Instead of pitching the usual high camps, they plan to complete the ascent from base camp to summit in one day and without interruption. To put the icing on the cake, Benjamin intends to break the speed record for climbing an eight-thousander and to descend from its peak by paraglider! However, once they reach the death zone, not everything goes according to plan …