The annual Backcountry Film Festival is put together by the Winter Wildlands Alliance (WWA), screens around the world, and is hosted locally by Friends of the Earth and RMIT Outdoors Club.
The 2024 season will screen in Naarm/ Melbourne on Monday April 22.
It will feature a collection of short documentaries and ski movies about the pursuit of adventure in the mountains, artistic vision, friendship, and how the snowsports community is adapting to a changing environment.
It will feature two locally produced films and the WWA program of 10 films, with a total run time of about 140 minutes.
Location
RMIT Building 80
080.01.002 Level 1 Cinema
445 Swanston St
Melbourne, VIC, 3000
(This is the same venue as last year. Look for signs once you're in the building).
Times
We will set up stalls from 6.15pm, and doors open from 6.30pm, show starts at 6.45 sharp. Show will go until 9.45pm.
There will be:
- speakers from a range of local backcountry groups including Coralie Reich from RMIT Outdoors Club, James Worsfold, Alastair McLeod and Maya Shin from Protect Our Winters and Gavin Bufton from the Victorian Backcountry Festival organising committtee
- stalls from a range of groups, including Liebeskii, Protect our Winters, and hoodies and tshirts from the Friends of the Earth alpine forests campaign, and other merch for sale (please bring cash if possible)
- please bring some gold coins if you want to get a copy of this year’s Mountain Journal magazine
- there will be some great give aways from Patagonia
- there will be a couple of short locally made backcountry films, which will be screened after the speakers
- then we will get into the WWA program. The total runtime for the WWA 2023-24 season is 120 minutes and features 10 films.
Check below for the full lineup.
Tickets
Tickets are $8 unwaged, $15 waged, $25 family/ household.
You can also get tickets on the night (please bring cash).
Local films
36o South
‘A team of 4 head into the Australian backcountry, looking for the steepest terrain the red continent has to offer – challenging popular beliefs of what skiing and snowboarding looks like in Australia.
Directed by Divya Gordon. Featuring Tim van der Krogt, Chris Wills, Divya Gorden, Aaron Dickfos and Lewis Foster. Filmed by Divya Gordo and Aaron Dickfos.
Made with support from Arcteryx Australia, Weston Backcountry, Sungod, Mountain Designs, Bridge Road Brewers and On Track Meals Produced by Rampage Media, Chris Wills and Tim Van Der Krogt.
The trailer is now on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTIsvmZnIUI
Spring Shralpinism on Sentinel Ridge
Join 7 good friends as they camp, climb and snow surf their way around the spectacular NSW Main Range. 5 days of perfect weather and amazing spring snow conditions. Poised high camping over the Western Faces, this trip will surely be etched in their minds and souls for a long time to come.
Filmed & edited by Chris Zinon.
More to be added
There will be at least one more local film screened this year.
If you have a film you would like to submit for the festival, please get in touch: [email protected]
ABOVE: Image from Sentinel Ridge film.
The Winter Wildlands lineup
The total runtime for the WWA 2023-24 season is 120 minutes.
The films in the WWA season are listed below (you can find more detail here).
What If?
6:00 minutes
Human-Powered Film Grant Award Winner (2023)
By Josh Goldsmith
A countdown into the mind of a backcountry skier as he contemplates the delicate balance between risk and reward; confidence and apprehension.
CON ARTIST
12:00 minutes
By MBG Motion Pictures
Three female freeskiers find themselves on a transcendental journey, crossing the lines of reality and the subconscious mind in a heist for self-identity.
Beloved Whitebark: Stalwart Witness
6:33 minutes
By Creative Ascents Films
Having worked to protect whitebark pine in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem for the last 23 years, Nancy Bockino invites you to get to know this charismatic tree in the alpine. Learn about why whitebark is important and its present perilous situation. Nurture your own connection to the alpine and its inhabitants.
109 Below
13:42 minutes
By Stept Studios
A tale of resilience, grit and elite rescue volunteers going out of their way to save the lives of strangers, 109 BELOW traces how an attempted rescue on Mount Washington in 1982 changed not only the course of two climbers’ lives – but also the lives of the rescuers who attempted to save them, and the future of prosthetics, forever.
Beyond Begbie
13:36 minutes
By Zoya Lynch
Climbing Mt Begbie is a “right of passage” for every hiker, climber, sledder, and skier who chooses to make Revelstoke their home. While this peak has created an entire contemporary culture in Revelstoke, its name and story only represent colonial history, with no reference to the Indigenous heritage of this land. Is it the outdoor community’s responsibility to help change this?
Have An Adventure
20:00 minutes
By Colby Elliot
A human powered think piece that follows a collection of skiers as they explore familiar terrain in search of new adventure around Utah’s famous backcountry. Join John as he follows in his father’s tracks to turn new corners and explore the canyon he grew up in. Along the way John explores his father’s skiing philosophies while considering ways to nurture the rapidly changing culture of a growing ski community.
Bloom
14:20 minutes
By Kyle Hilken
Sierra Schlag navigates the world after losing her father on 9/11, exploring her grief and identity as a Japanese-American while also finding herself under the cloak of depression. While she navigates these complexities, Sierra finds a way to connect with her dad and heal through skiing.
burn. // A Ski Film
11:22 minutes
By Kellen MacDonald
The story of how forest fires are impacting large swaths of terrain in the western United States and Canada. In the wake of the fires, certain areas are transformed into beautiful playgrounds for skiers and snowboarders.
Racha
10:00 minutes
By Andy Hardy
Through stunning cinematography and powerful storytelling, this film takes you on a journey of discovery, where the love of skiing leads to an unexpected education, and a story that demands to be told.
The Redline Traverse (Short)
6:33 minutes
By Steve Seime
Jenna Kane and Greg Cunningham take on the Redline Traverse, the tallest and longest ski tour in the Sierra Nevada. They pay tribute to the pioneers of the route, the spirit of the tour and, of course, ski.