ShAFF Climbing Films from 2017

Before It Falls

The Totem Pole has captured the imaginations, blood, sweat and tears of the world’s greatest climbers. When their efforts have come and gone the rock, the precarious Totem Pole, is all that endures.

Before it Falls is the first co-production between climbing film makers Simon Bischoff and Mathew Farrell. It was filmed on location on the the Tasman Peninsula, a wild and dramatic outcrop of swell-blasted dolorite columns and cliff tops on Tasmania’s east coast. The Tasman Peninsula is an international tourist attraction, with the precarious Totem Pole one of its crown features. Before it Falls is as much a tribute to the geography as it is a story of human endeavour.

Lee Cossey is a world class climber, but is such a calm and understated character that he is barely known outside his native Australia. Lee has had his eye on the infamous Ewbank route for may years, and is one of the very few people in the world willing to attempt an onsight of such a heinous route, which has only seen two successful free ascents, and to our knowledge, no other onsight attempts. Before it Falls documents Lee's efforts, and helps to share this world in a way that is accessible to climbers and non-climbers alike.

Boys In The Bugs

Matt Segal and Will Stanhope have spent a decade climbing the world's hardest cracks. Now they travel deep into the Canadian wilderness to the infamous Bugaboo Mountains where they are looking for the ultimate next-level crack climb.

Matt Segal and Will Stanhope have spent a decade climbing the world's hardest cracks. Crack climbing is a bold, traditionalist discipline in which climbers “jam” their hands, feet and even entire bodies into cracks, while skillfully protecting themselves from a fall by placing their own removable gear in the rock. In an age of elite athletes, fad diets and training regimes, Matt and Will harken back to the old school of climbing, where guts and spirit make up for their lack of planning and healthy lifestyle. Now they travel deep into the Canadian wilderness to the infamous Bugaboo Mountains where they are looking for the ultimate next-level crack climb – following a long, thin break in the rock so narrow that only the tips of their fingers fit inside. It’s the beginning of an epic, multi-year quest that will change their lives.

Brette

Join Brette Harrington on a global journey from the frozen waterfalls of the Canadian rockies, to the big wall free climbing proving ground of Yosemite’s El Capitan, and onto a landmark solo of Chiara di Luna in the alpine mecca of Patagonia’s Cerro Torre Range.

24-year old Brette Harrington is a rising young talent in the climbing world. From overhanging free climbs to long alpine solos, she excels at all disciplines of the sport, while forging a life path defined by adventure. Join Brette on a global journey from the frozen waterfalls of the Canadian rockies, to the big wall free climbing proving ground of Yosemite’s El Capitan, and onto a landmark solo of Chiara di Luna in the alpine mecca of Patagonia’s Cerro Torre Range.

Dodo's Delight

Jump on board a madcap sailing adventure to the biggest rock walls in the Arctic Circle with a team of elite climbers as zany as they are talented.

It doesn't count as male nudity if you're covered up by a ukulele. Hilarious and dramatic sailing / climbing adventure.

Paul Hodgson Music Judge

If you like big wall climbing and don't want to get too deep. This is the big Wall film for you, lots of fun form Real Rock.

Ed Birch Director of Salt-Street productions

Jump on board a madcap sailing adventure to the biggest rock walls in the Arctic Circle with a team of elite climbers as zany as they are talented. Sean Villanueva, Nico Favresse, Olivier Favresse and Ben Ditto have made cutting edge first ascents in remote mountain ranges around the world -- climbing hard, making music and goofing off thousands of feet in the air. Now they embark on their greatest expedition yet, voyaging to the massive walls of Greenland and Baffin Island on the good ship Dodo’s Delight, skippered by the spry 79-year old Captain Bob Shepton. Amongst rough seas, falling rocks and freezing temperatures, this hilarious and badass gang of adventurers forge bold new routes and have the time of their lives.

Doing it Scared

18 years after a catastrophic accident which left him with hemiplegia, climber Paul Pritchard returns to the Totem Pole to find out if he has recovered enough to finish the climb.

British climber – now resident of Tasmania – Paul Pritchard, was one of the leading climbers and mountaineers of the 1980s and 1990s, renowned for his hard and extremely bold first ascents. In 1998 Paul was abseiling in to climb the Totem Pole in Tasmania when he dislodged a rock with his rope that hit him on the head, leaving him with a severe head injury that he was lucky to survive: “All I wanted to do was go to sleep but I was certain that if I did so it would have been the last sleep I ever made.” The aftermath of the accident left him with hemiplegia, which means he has little feeling or movement in the right side of this body. Despite this disability, Paul’s continued to live a life filled with adventure: "That accident on the Totem Pole was the best thing that ever happened to me.” Eighteen years later Paul returns to the Totem Pole to find out if he has recovered enough to finish the climb. “There are a thousand reasons not to climb a mountain: rock-fall, hypothermia, falling off, avalanche, altitude sickness, severe weather or just the hard work of it. However, there is but one singular reason to climb when you look at it carefully.” This is a film about an extraordinary man on an inspiring life journey, his continuing recovery from a crushing injury and the never waning desire for adventure. This is a film about determination and acceptance, patience and humility, grace, and ultimately, freedom. “Its a very scenic place to have a head injury, that's for sure!” Paul Pritchard

This project became a labour of love the very moment a large group of Paul's friends came together to help out in planning the logistics of the climb. Rummin Productions in association with Ignite Digi filmed the climb as it unfolded from every angle including from the air through the use of drones. After the climb, the Australian National broadcaster picked up the story and filmed some more interviews, producing a half hour of television for an Australian Story program, which aired in July 2016. Thanks to some great artistic collaboration over many months, and a successful crowd funding campaign that helped make it a reality; Rummin Productions have now produced this short film that gives audiences the chance to see Paul go full circle and share in his personal triumph at long last.

Down to Nothing

This harrowing expedition pushed a group of mountaineers to the mental and physical brink; carving them Down To Nothing.

Frankly terrifying yet stunningly beautiful of an expedition that turns out to be very, VERY challenging. Be glad you weren't on this one!

Paul Hodgson Music Judge

A really well-crafted expedition film, the team slowly become more and more exposed....

Claire Carter Writer, Film Officer for Kendal Mountain Festival, 'Creative Consultant'.

This harrowing expedition pushed a group of mountaineers to the mental and physical brink; carving them Down To Nothing. A six-person team from The North Face and National Geographic attempted to summit an obscure peak in Myanmar (Hkakabo Razi) to determine if it is Southeast Asia’s highest point. The expedition members, led by The North Face athlete and Telluride mountaineer Hilaree O’Neill include, videographer Renan Ozturk, climber Emily Harrington, and National Geographic author Mark Jenkins, photographer Cory Richards, and basecamp manager Taylor Rees.

Fallen Feather

In the far north of America's heartland sandstone walls erupt from the icy waters of an inland sea to form one of the largest concentrations of climbable ice in North America.

The tiny Lake Superior harbor town of Munising, Michigan in the American Midwest is the unlikely home to one of North America's largest concentrations of climbable ice. Fallen Feather is a 10-minute excerpt from the 71-minute Michigan Ice Film, a series of vignettes revealing the climbing potential, unique landscape and hardy northern culture that make Michigan ice climbing what it is: raw, pure and humbling.

Haywire

Two friends tell a gripping story of risk, success, and terrifying failure, in the rarely-seen alpine wilderness on Baffin Island

Haywire is a film that questions the cost of adventure, and communicates the seldom seen emotions of fear, uncertainty, and doubt. It's a raw and relatable look into Cheyne Lempe's personal life and doesn't just glorify the climbing but shows real internal struggles. In the harsh and unforgiving environment of Baffin Island, simply turning the camera on proves to be incredibly difficult. In a land that is more remote than you can imagine, the pure beauty and sense of adventure will draw you in and leave you wanting more.

Obsession: Tom Randall

For Tom, climbing is all consuming, but this hasn't always been the case.

Tom Randall is a modern day institution in the world of British climbing. Well known for his acquired taste for offwidth crack routes, Tom consistently sets himself the highest standards and the hardest lines. For Tom, climbing is all consuming, but this hasn't always been the case. In ‘Obsession’ Tom provides a unique insight into his formative years spent in a world entirely different to the one we associate him with now, and how he copes with conflicting priorities that are fundamental to his continued happiness and ambitious drive.

Poumaka

Bouldering champion, Angie Payne, leaves everything she knows behind as she ventures deep into the French Polynesian jungle with veteran climber and explorer, Mike Libecki. Their objective: to put up a first ascent on the south face of the Poumaka Tower. They somehow endure blood, sweat, and tears as the team climbs through mud and fear, into the unknown.

Bouldering champion, Angie Payne, leaves everything she knows behind as she ventures deep into the French Polynesian jungle with veteran climber and explorer, Mike Libecki. Their objective: to put up a first ascent on the south face of the Poumaka Tower. They somehow endure blood, sweat, and tears as the team climbs through mud and fear, into the unknown.

Shauna and Pete go crack climbing!

Pete Whittaker takes Shauna for a crash course in crack climbing - and not everything goes to plan...

No one can argue that Shauna Coxsey has had a remarkable season. Already she is the IFSC Bouldering World Cup Champion and the season is yet to finish! Obviously, you would be excused for thinking that Shauna does not have any weaknesses, although it is not quite true... Shauna was once confronted with a crack in a competition and did not have the first idea how to get off the ground, let alone climb the thing. When you are an aspiring world champion, weakness are not something to be trifled with; call in a Wideboy and get it sorted. In this film from the BMC, crack addict Pete Whittaker takes Shauna for a crash course in crack climbing - and not everything goes to plan...

Young Guns

Meet the new faces of climbing: 14-year-old Ashima Shiraishi and 15-year-old Kai Lightner

Meet the new faces of climbing: 14-year-old Ashima Shiraishi and 15-year-old Kai Lightner are the leaders of a new generation poised to take the sport to the next level. Ashima, a New York City native, has already become the youngest person and the first female to climb the benchmark elite grades of 5.15a and v15. Kai, one of the few African American climbers rising to the top of the sport, became a national climbing champion as a high school sophomore. Now these two prodigies and friends travel to the rugged coast of Norway, where a legendary cave is filled with the most difficult climbs on earth. Pushed outside their comfort zone, Kai and Ashima learn some hard but important lessons that will carry them to even greater heights.